Today's Bible reading will be from Matthew, reading from chapter 21, verses 1-17.
!
This took place to fulfil 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, 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.
Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road.
And the crowds that went before him and that followed him 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.
And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple.
And he overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons.
He said to them,
It is written,
My house shall be called a house of prayer,
but you make it a den of robbers.
And the blinds and the lame came to him in the temple,
and he healed them.
But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did,
and the children crying out in the temple,
Hosanna to the Son of David!
They were indignant.
And they said to him,
Do you hear what these are saying?
And Jesus said to them,
Yes.
Have you never read?
Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies,
you have prepared praise.
And leaving them,
he went out of the city to Bethany
and lodged there.
This is God's word to us today.
May we be blessed by listening to it.
Well, good morning, everyone.
Will you pray with me as we come to God's word?
Our Father, as we just sang,
I pray that through your word and by your spirit,
you would convince our hearts to crown you
the Lord of peace.
Lord, convince our hearts to crown you.
I pray this in Jesus' name.
Amen.
Well, when leaders start their time in power,
how they begin often isn't an accident.
It's often very careful.
So there's a new coach.
I'm so sorry, another sport illustration.
I've got to find better illustrations.
But there's this new coach for a soccer team in England.
And every coach would start their leadership
by calling a meeting,
the players, the coaching staff,
the owners of the club.
But this guy's done something different.
And everyone noticed it.
He also invited the kitchen staff.
He invites the groundskeepers.
He invited the bus drivers.
He invited everyone.
And everyone, before he said a word,
just in that one act,
he has symbolised what his leadership wants to be about.
It's a clear message.
He's going to be honouring the contribution of all.
Or if you want to read another example,
read the official webpage for President Trump's
first 100 hours in his second term in office
to kick off America's golden age.
It's very intentional what he did first.
There's investment in American business.
There's tearing down what his predecessor built up.
There's securing the American border.
There's deportation flights immediately.
What a leader does first really characterises
what their rule is going to be about.
Matthew has spent 20 chapters so far
trying to convince us, persuade us,
Jesus is the greatest king history has ever known.
Fulfilling all the Old Testament hopes.
But until now, Jesus has been very, very careful
not to go public.
When we re-looked at chapter 16,
as soon as the disciples confess,
you are the king,
his immediate words is,
he strictly charged the disciples
to tell no one
that he was the Christ.
Why?
Because he won't let people's expectations define him.
He won't let your expectations define him.
My expectations.
He's going to define himself.
Now as we enter Jerusalem,
he's chosen this time to go very public.
He's very intentionally orchestrating this event
to define what his rule is about.
He's picked the most important time in the Jewish calendar,
the most religious significance.
There's crowds coming to Jerusalem for Passover,
God's deliverance, salvation.
He's picked the most important place.
We're on the Mount of Olives,
which was a bit higher than Jerusalem.
You could see the city,
the capital.
You could see the temple.
Two centuries earlier,
Simon Maccabees had defeated foreign armies
to secure Israel's independence.
He defeated the armies
and he rode into Jerusalem
riding his war horse
and people,
there was a parade.
There was cheering,
like the end of World War II.
There was cheering in the street.
There was people putting palm branches down on the ground.
What does Jesus do?
He doesn't come in on a war horse.
A donkey.
Not only a donkey,
this small baby,
well,
kid donkey.
It's never been ridden,
Mark's gospel says.
If you saw it,
it's like,
it's almost laughable.
It's like a huge man
riding this little motorbike.
Why did he choose that?
What is this symbolic act telling us?
He's defining his rule.
What's he telling us by doing this?
Well,
it emphasises his lowliness,
his weakness,
his humility,
even humiliation.
But he's also making the greatest claim
a human being has ever made about himself.
It wasn't the early church
who just misinterpreted Jesus' sayings
and go,
we're going to give him the title Lord.
He is taking that title for himself.
He is ascribing the title Lord to himself.
When he sends his disciples,
go get these donkeys,
and if anyone asks you,
why are you taking our donkeys?
Tell them the Lord.
He hasn't used that phrase before now.
Tell him the Lord.
He knows exactly what he's doing.
The symbolism,
the crowds don't miss it.
We might misunderstand it,
but the crowds don't miss it.
Solomon,
David's son,
when he was crowned king,
that was done
by David giving instructions,
saying,
get him to ride on my donkey.
And that declared
that succession.
And Zachariah,
the prophet Zachariah,
picks this up.
The true son of David,
who will have an eternal kingdom,
behold,
your king is coming to you,
humble and mounted on a donkey.
He is ascribing himself
as fulfilling all the Old Testament hopes.
There is a frenzy.
There's a parade.
People understand what he's doing.
There's messianic hopes.
There's fever pitch.
This is an exciting time.
They are crying out,
Hosanna,
which apparently transliterates the Hebrew,
save us.
They're praising God,
finally.
You've sent your Messiah,
save us.
This is an exciting scene.
Ordinary clothes,
ordinary followers,
a ridiculous donkey,
and ordinary followers still today,
I'm sorry to say.
Despite appearances,
he is saying,
I'm the greatest king.
I am that king.
It's not others saying it to him.
He's claiming it.
That's what this little donkey says.
So are you willing to join the parade
and the celebration
of this donkey-riding king?
There's graffiti.
Graffiti in Rome,
on a wall in Rome,
dated to about 200 AD,
and it's this sketch.
It looks like a children's drawing,
but it's probably a sketch of a man
worshipping what looks like the figure of a man on a cross
with a donkey's head.
And the inscription says,
Alex,
I can't even say it.
I'm just going to say Alex.
Alex worships his God.
Roman Empire,
they worship power.
This is ridiculous.
You Christians,
worshipping
this donkey-riding king.
His weakness,
it's not attractive.
It's not attractive to this world.
But then,
but then,
other people find him
not attractive for a different reason,
like Ricky Gervais,
comedian.
He wrote an article,
and Jesus,
he says,
Jesus was a man.
And if you forget all that rubbish
about being half God,
and forget that,
believe the non-super,
if you just believe the non-supernatural acts
accredited to him,
he was a man
whose wise words
many other men would still follow.
His message was usually
one of forgiveness and kindness.
But this donkey-riding king,
he's declaring himself,
flawed,
of the entire world.
This world doesn't like
his great claims.
He's offensive.
He's ridiculous.
He doesn't fit
what this world
finds attractive,
and that's exactly
why he's worth following.
Because he's so different
from the rest of the world.
So are we willing
to follow this?
Are we willing
to celebrate,
or are we embarrassed?
The second thing
this leader is declaring
by this carefully chosen act
is that he's not
going to conquer
through force,
and power,
and threat.
It hints
at how he's going
to conquer the world.
Not as every other
kingdom of this world
conquers.
when our military
showed
our strength
with the
talisman saver
exhibition,
I didn't see
us showing off
our donkey
collection.
There's not
an AUKUS agreement
for producing
more donkeys.
peace.
This king
is going to
conquer by peace.
I'm not saying
countries can't
have military.
That's part of
the country's job
to protect its citizens.
But I'm just saying
this kingdom
is very,
very,
very different.
He's going to be
characterised by peace.
Not by taking power
and killing,
but by losing power
and dying.
He's going to be
humiliated.
That's how he's
going to conquer.
This peace,
he's going against
the expectations
of the crowd.
They thought
he was going to
come in
and destroy
the nations,
make Israel
great again.
He's going
against that
expectation.
No,
I'm going to
conquer through
peace.
And the kind
of peace
I'm bringing
is a greater
peace than
you're asking
for.
Now,
Don Carson
says something
about this
peace.
I think he's
on to something,
but see what
you think.
If you were
on holidays
in the
countryside
and you
thought,
a fun
activity for
today,
let's go
horse riding.
And just
before you
get on the
horse,
the instructor
says,
hey,
by the
way,
no one's
ever ridden
this horse
before.
Would you
go,
what a
privilege.
I get to
be first.
Now,
you're laughing
because we
all know
common sense,
you do not
get on an
animal that
has never
been ridden
before.
But that's
exactly,
and now put
that animal
in a parade
of people
screaming.
And yet,
it's just
this little
hint,
I think
Carson is
on to
something
here,
that under
the hand
of its
Lord,
this little
animal is
calm.
The peace
he's bringing
is to the
entire world.
He's going
to put the
whole world,
even nature,
right.
I think it's
this little
hint.
He's
fulfilling
Old Testament
hopes,
and he's
bringing
peace,
putting
everything,
he's going
to put
everything
right
by
becoming
last,
by being
humiliated,
not by
taking power,
by losing
it.
That's his
rule.
And what
he does
next,
we see
the enemy
he's come
to save
us from.
The crowds
thought,
bring judgment
on the
Romans,
but where
does he
attack?
He doesn't
attack the
governor's
palace.
He attacks
the worship
at the
temple.
Verses
12 to
16,
all happen
in the
temple.
We are
reminded
repeatedly,
the blind
and lame
came to
him in
the temple.
The
children
are crying
out
Hosanna
in the
temple.
That's
where
he attacks.
So the
scene here
where he
gets angry
and drives
out all
who sold
and bought,
worshipers,
pilgrims,
they're coming
for Passover
festival,
they need
animals to
sacrifice,
they need
to exchange
their currency
for God
required a
temple tax
for the
upkeep of
the temple.
You could
easily see
how this
would be
justified as
this is what
God wants
us to do,
to worship
him.
But they're in
the outer
court of the
temple,
which is where
the nations
were allowed
to come in,
where the
lame and
the sick
and crippled
priests even
were allowed
to come into
that area
to worship.
They've
turned a
place of
worship
into a
place to
make money
and have
driven out
the nations
and the
sick.
He first
quotes Isaiah,
my house
shall be
called a
house of
prayer,
and the
end of
that quote,
for all
nations.
the immediate
context of
a lot of
these Old
Testament
passages is
he's claiming
to be king
of all
nations.
He's going
to bring
worship to
God for
all nations.
He then
quotes Jeremiah
7,
the den of
robbers.
Instead of
being a
house of
prayer,
proper
worship,
let me read
a bit from
Jeremiah 7.
will you
steal,
murder,
commit
adultery,
swear
falsely,
make
offerings to
Baal,
and go
after other
gods that
you have
not known,
and then
come and
stand before
me in
this house,
which is
called by
my name,
and say,
we are
delivered,
only to
go on
doing all
these
abominations?
Has
this house
which is
called by
my name
become a
den of
robbers in
your eyes?
Now,
because you
have done
all these
things,
declares the
Lord,
and when I
spoke to
you persistently,
you did not
listen,
and when I
called you,
you did not
answer,
I will cast
you out of
my sight.
They had a
false security
in their
religious deeds,
but they
weren't
listening to
what God
is saying.
our greatest
problem is
our worship
problem.
It's not
external,
someone
outside of
us,
or something
happening to
us.
Our greatest
problem is
our worship
problem.
He's come to
put us at
peace with
God,
right with
God.
He's come
to bring the
whole world
right with
God.
peace with
God,
and we
get a
glimpse of
how he
brings peace
with God.
He doesn't
help the
worshipers coming
to the
temple in
offering
sacrifices.
He inserts
himself as
greater than
the temple.
That's how
he's going
to bring
peace,
not by
helping you
worship at
the temple,
but he
inserts
himself.
Now,
where am I
getting this
from?
You don't
have the
right to
walk into
my house
and move
my lounges
around if
you think
I've got it
in the wrong
spot.
You don't
have the
right.
If you
think my
cling wrap
is in
the wrong
drawer,
I don't
care.
It's my
house.
Or our
house.
Him
going in
there,
do you
see the
claim he's
making?
The only
person who
has the
right to
walk into
a house
and rearrange
stuff is
its owner.
He's
inserting
himself.
The blind
and the
lame
come to
him.
They don't
go to
the chief
priest.
Chief
priest,
intercede
for us
for God.
No.
They come
to him.
I watched
this documentary
biography,
Notes on
Blindness.
It was on
Netflix.
I haven't
checked it
recently.
This was a
couple of
years ago.
This guy
used to be
able to
fully see
but his
eyes
degenerated
quickly to
the point
of total
blindness and
Christmas
Day was
agony for
him because
he could
hear his
children
opening in the
presents but
he couldn't
see their
smiles.
eyes.
He felt
so cut
off from
his family.
He couldn't
see his
newborn
daughter's
face.
These
guys or
girls,
whoever,
these blind
and lame
coming would
have felt so
cut off
from God
and under
curse,
punished by
him.
this is a
little word.
If you're
feeling
unworthy,
look,
they come
to him
and he
receives
them,
he heals
them,
he welcomes,
he gives
all the
blessing of
God to
them,
he restores
them.
I think
the bodily
restoration
is just
an image
of the
spiritual
restoration,
the whole
restoration
he brings.
He's
inserting
himself.
Don't get
right with
God
through the
temple,
but through
me.
And these
little
children
are
praising
him.
They're
not wise
enough to
probably know
the significance
of all that
was happening
that day,
but they're
these little
dependent
children without
skepticism,
without
worrying what
others think.
They're just
echoing the
crowds in
the street,
unashamedly
joyfully
chanting
in the
temple.
Save us,
Hosanna,
to the
son of
David.
But the
first,
those thinking
they are
strong,
those thinking
they have
something to
offer God,
that God
needs them
somehow,
the so-called
expert,
the irony is
they see
the wonderful
things he's
doing,
but they
remain willfully
blind and
they're offended
by him,
they're angry,
they're
questioned.
Don't you
hear what
these little
children are
saying?
I think
it's,
everyone in
the streets
yelling it,
I think,
I suspect
the problem
is they're
in the
temple,
they're in
the temple
and they're
praising you.
You know
when you ask
a question,
like if a
parent in
the room
today is
like,
don't you
know we're
in church?
That's an
instruction.
That's not a
question,
it's really
going,
Jesus,
do you
hear what
they're
saying?
You
better do
something about
this.
They are
praising you
here in
this place
when they
should be
praising God.
If you
keep accepting
this here,
you are
really
blaspheming.
You
better do
something about
this,
Jesus.
And he
could not
have poured
more fuel
on the
fire at
this point.
I love
his response.
Do you
hear what
they're
saying?
Yes?
I thought
you were
experts.
Haven't
you read
Psalm 8?
Out of
the mouth
of infants
and nursing
babies you
have prepared
praise.
Now,
Psalm 8
is children
praising
Yahweh.
they're
praising me
and they
should keep
praising me.
I'm not
only the
son of
David,
I'm the
son of
God.
He
inserts
himself.
Someone
greater than
the temple
is here.
The Lord,
as the
prophet
Malachi
said,
the Lord
whom you
seek will
suddenly
come to
his temple.
He's
pushing
them to
the point,
crown
me.
Crown
me.
Or
kill
me.
He's
humble.
Yes,
he is so
humble.
But he's
come to
fix our
worship
problem.
I think
the implication
of this is
there's no
nook or
cranny of
your life
where he
won't stop
inserting
himself into
my life
and your
life.
There is
not a
nook or
cranny.
There's
nothing.
Your
spouse,
your
children,
your
dreams and
aspirations,
he is
inserting
himself
saying,
crown
me.
He's
come to
fix our
worship
problem.
There's
no one
like him.
He's
so
humble
and gentle
and lowly
that
children
are drawn
to him,
prostitutes
are drawn
to him,
outcasts,
foreigners
are drawn
to him,
those
feeling
utterly
unworthy
are drawn
to him.
and
received.
There's
no one
like him
and yet
he
inserts
himself,
crown
me.
I think
this
passage is
pushing
us to
the same
point that
he pushed
the religious
leaders
and the
crowd on
that day,
crown
me.
I will
not just
be
liked.
I will
not be
your
personal
assistant.
All
your
worship
should
be
directed
at
me.
There's
a good
quote by
Reynolds Price
that captures
the
offence
of the
Gospels.
He says,
if 2,000
years of
pious
handling
handling of
this
gospel,
if 2,000
years of
this pious
handling had
not dimmed
our understanding
of this
story's
demand,
his gospel
would still
be seen as
the burning
outrage it
really continues
to be.
It is
either a
work of
madness or
a blinding
revelation.
The acts
it portrays,
the claims
it advances
from the
very first
paragraph,
demand that
we make a
hard choice.
If we
take the
gospel
writer
seriously,
we must
finally ask
the question
he thrusts
so
fragrantly
towards us.
Does he
bring us
a life
transforming
truth?
Or is
this one
gifted
lunatic's
tale of
another
lunatic
wilder
than he?
He's
saying,
crown me.
many
question why
God doesn't
end all
evil.
Why
doesn't he
end sickness?
Why
doesn't he
end war?
Why
doesn't he
end the
oppression of
the vulnerable,
all the
injustice?
Why doesn't
he end all
that?
And he
promises he
will.
A day is
coming where
he will be
declared a
second time
and he
will be
riding a
horse on
that day
and he
will end
all evil.
But today
he's
ridden on
a donkey
because he's
going to
the cross
to die
in our
place so
that when
he ends
all evil
he doesn't
have to
end you
and me.
Don't
waste this
brief,
brief moment
of his
humiliation.
confession.
Come and
find rest
for your
souls.
Feel the
confrontation
of this
passage.
He's
saying
crown
me.
Give
yourself
totally
to me.
I am
gentle
and lowly
in heart
and you'll
find rest
for your
souls.
Crown
me.
I think
the other
thing we
should take
away from
this passage
is this
king continues
to conquer
through weakness.
things.
I keep
trying to
manage my
life.
I keep
trying to
be in
control and
make better
plans and
get ahead and
boast in my
abilities and
my accomplishments.
I keep going
back to that
way of
thinking.
I think
there's an
imitation of
the Christian
life that
says just
just be
self-controlled
be generous
be courageous
be kind.
This
passage
that's not
far enough.
It's not
far enough
to the
kind of
life that
he's calling
us to.
We've got to
follow this
donkey
riding king
who conquers
through
humiliation.
I believe
he's calling
us to
serve others
by sharing
in his
weakness,
in his
humiliation.
Like Paul
says in
2 Corinthians
4,
we have
this treasure
in jars
of clay
to show
that the
surpassing
power belongs
to God
and not
to us.
So I
wonder what
you're facing
in life
at the
moment.
What would
it look
like for
you not
to try
and conquer
that through
managing it,
being strong?
What would
it look like
to follow
this donkey
king and
lay down
your life
to show
that your
life is
resting in
him and
you want
others to
find the
peace that
you've
found in
him?
What would
it look
like to
follow his
example?
I take
great confidence
that he loves
to use
weakness.
Our God,
our donkey
riding king
loves to
conquer
through
weakness.
That is
really good
news because
he can use
someone like
me.
Well,
let's crown
him in our
hearts and
let's follow
him.
not in
strength but
in
humiliation.
Will you
pray with me?
Let's pray.
Oh,
Lord,
thank you
that you
don't win
our hearts
through threat
and fear
but you
win us
over by
serving us.
Lord, you
are so
humble that
you would
lower
yourself
to the
very last.
Forgive us
for
trying to
make
ourselves
great as
the world
counts
greatness.
Forgive us
for that
and help
us worship
you like
those little
children
unashamed
in the
temple
just
praising
you
because of
the peace
you bring.
Lord,
please use us
as a church
not through
us being
clever
or
strong
or
successful.
Use us
through our
weakness.
Lord, it's
a dangerous
prayer because
I just want
a comfortable
life but
use our
pain
and
our loss
to shine
the peace
that you've
given us
in Jesus.
Please use
us as a
church
to declare
the peace
that you've
brought.
I pray this
in Jesus'
name.
Amen.