A few years ago I was showing a friend around London and we were walking down by Green Park and then across the front of Buckingham Palace and just to the side of the railings, the gates opened and a car drove out with the Queen sitting in the back seat on her own.
And there was a sense in which it was just a very ordinary thing. It was as if her driver was just taking her down to the shop to get some milk. There weren't any outriders or anything else. There was one motorcycle that had sort of gone to clear a bit in front of her but it seemed very ordinary just popping out.
But of course there was also something extraordinary about it because as the car emerged and as people realized who was actually sitting in the back, there was a huge fuss. People grabbing their phones wanting to get a photograph and people sort of standing up straight in the presence of Majesty. I think I even waved. I didn't know what to do.
I've just seen the Queen. She was, I don't know, literally 10 feet away. The car was just so close and people had this, there was something about the grandeur of royalty that drew out this response.
Nobody had told anybody how to react. Nobody had said you stand up straight, you acknowledge her presence as she comes past, you celebrate, you do whatever it is.
Nobody had said you stand up straight, you do whatever it is. Nobody had said that there was just something within all of us. There was probably over 50 people gathered there who reacted instinctively.
There was something of the grandeur of who was there that drew this response.
That's what we see on this first Palm Sunday. In Luke's account, in Luke chapter 19, which is a more mere account than the other Gospels, we see this.
Jesus is declared to be God's King. Look at verse 38.
As he comes down the hill, instinctively people cry out and cheer.
Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord.
The presence of this one in their midst draws this response from them.
The triumphal entry is something that the church marks on Palm Sunday, so we're going to do that this morning.
I want us to walk through Luke's account here.
As I say, it's a bit briefer than perhaps Matthew's account, but it is telling us about the King, about God's King who has come.
It is drawing out, particularly I want us to see three elements of this story.
The first is his control.
The first thing we see about God's King in this account is his control.
Verse 29.
When he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of the disciples, saying,
Go into the village in front of you, where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet sat.
Untie it and bring it here.
If anyone asks you, why are you untying it?
You shall say this, the Lord has need of it.
So those who were sent went away and found it just as he had told them.
And as they were untying the colt, its owner said to them, why are you untying the colt?
And they said, the Lord has need of it.
And they brought it to Jesus.
If you think about Jesus' posture in the Gospels, it's actually quite unusual for him to express a need in this way.
I can't think of another time that he says, go and get that because I need it.
But he does it here because he is orchestrating these events.
And in order to do that, he needs the colt.
The colt that Matthew tells us is the foal of a donkey.
Now to start with, as we go through here, we see Jesus' control in the unfolding of the details of the day.
You see that.
He says, go into the village.
That village in front of you.
Just pass the welcome to Bethphage sign, you'll find a colt tied there to a railing.
It's a young colt.
Untie it and bring it to me.
Oh, and if anyone asks you what they're doing, just tell them the Lord has need of it.
Off the disciples go.
And everything that he said will happen, happens.
The colt was there.
The people asked the question.
The disciples had been told that they would.
They answer it as they should.
And the colt is now standing beside Jesus.
Now the colt belongs to Jesus by virtue of the fact that he created it.
Colossians 1 tells us, by him all things were created in heaven and on earth.
That's true of the colt.
It's also true of the disciples.
And it's true of the owners of the colt as well.
So there's a sense in which there's nothing untoward about any of this.
Everything is as it should be.
The Lord of heaven and earth, who owns it all by the fact that he created it, demands that his property comes to him.
And so it does.
But Luke is giving us these details to show us that all that is happening is under the hand of the king of kings.
And therefore all that will unfold in the coming days is also under the control of that same king.
No surprises.
No mistakes.
No accidents.
How much does Jesus' control of everything factor in your life?
Whether it is the colt tied up in Bethphage or the traffic on your route to wherever you're wanting to go in a hurry or the unexpected diagnosis.
Do you see that Jesus is in complete control?
The Lord of glory ordains every detail of the unfolding of your life.
The good, the bad, and even also the ugly.
He orders your steps.
He provides what you have.
He allows your bad decisions to play out.
You are where you are in life because Jesus is in control.
Do you acknowledge this?
Do you acknowledge that your life is not just some unfolding story that has no real direction?
Or that in some way you are in control in the details of everything?
The Lord Jesus is in control of it all.
Now acknowledging that means that we will thank Him for the blessings.
Because they're not ultimately our doing.
It will mean you will trust Him for your struggles.
Because they are serving a purpose that you can't yet see.
And it will mean allowing His Word as your authority to shape your goals and your vision for life.
If Jesus is in control of everything, as He makes clear here,
you should submit your life to serve His glory, not your glory.
And we should repent of the desire to do otherwise.
Now one way this is seen is how we think about what we have.
The things that we possess.
When Jesus asks for something from you,
whether that is your time,
or your money,
or your children,
or even your worship.
As He demands that we gather
Lord's Day by Lord's Day to worship Him,
He makes that call on us.
As He does that,
do you respond like the owners of this cult?
The Lord has need of it.
The Lord requires it.
The Lord has asked for it.
He demands it of you.
However you hear those words here.
Do you see that the owners give up their cult?
There's no record of them saying,
hang on a second.
They gave up their cult immediately.
They didn't grumble.
They didn't say,
but this cult is my favorite one.
This cult is mine.
This cult is...
I've got a special bond with it.
No, they gave it up to their Lord and King.
They lived with open hands.
Everything that you possess,
your time, your money,
your children,
your stuff, whatever,
whatever you would fit into that,
your dot, dot, dot,
whatever it is,
He owns it anyway.
Those things are all just on loan to you from Him,
so hold them loosely.
Well, to start with,
Jesus controls the events of the day,
but the control reaches further,
and it reaches higher.
The very reason that He chooses this cult
as His transport into Jerusalem
is because in doing so,
He is bringing to fulfillment
an Old Testament prophecy.
Back in Zechariah chapter 9,
it says this,
Rejoice greatly,
O daughter of Zion.
Shout aloud,
O daughter of Jerusalem.
Behold,
your King is coming to you,
righteous,
and having salvation is He,
humble,
and mounted on a donkey.
A cult,
the foal of a donkey.
The cult
is His chosen means of transport
because it is the sign
that He is
this Messiah King.
That was what the Old Testament
said to look for.
Look for one who comes on a cult.
And what that tells us
is that the unfolding,
it's not just the unfolding
of the events of that day,
it is the unfolding of history,
and particularly salvation history,
that are also in the hands of Jesus.
The one on the cult
is the Lord of all.
The Lord of all.
He is the Lord of the very highest.
He is the Lord of the Queen
who drove out in the car that day.
He is the Lord of the King
who sits on our throne today.
He is the Lord of our government.
He is the Lord of every one of us
and every possible echelon
that there is in society.
Every politician.
Every sportsman.
What have we got today?
The masters.
We've got every golfer at the masters
and every one of his caddies.
We've got the boat race.
We've got every Cambridge
and every Oxford Blue
all under the control
and authority of this King.
He is the Lord of all.
There is great reassurance in that.
When we hear of authority like that,
it can make us fearful,
but there is great reassurance
for us in this.
When you trust yourself to this man,
you are in the hands of the one
who runs the universe
and who is on your side.
But there's also something important
about his using a colt
and that's our second point here
as Luke shows us.
First of all,
he shows us his control.
Secondly,
he shows us his humility.
His humility.
Verse 33,
And as they were untying the colt,
its owner said to them,
Why are you untying the colt?
And they said,
The Lord has need of it.
And they brought it to Jesus
and throwing their cloaks on the colt,
they set Jesus on it
and as he rode along,
they spread their cloaks on the road.
By choosing to ride into Jerusalem
on a colt,
Jesus isn't just fulfilling
the ancient prophecy of Zechariah 9,
but he's making a statement
about the nature of the kingship
of the one who is the king
of Zechariah 9.
Now ordinarily,
a king would come,
we know,
with pomp and grandeur
and all of the pageantry
that we saw
at the coronation of King Charles.
Roads are closed,
horses and carriages
are prepared
with trained professionals in charge.
There are robes
and crowns
and scepters
and dozens of people
playing their part
in a huge spectacle.
There's none of that
with King Jesus.
The colt was the sign,
the prop,
if you like,
of the humble character
of the rule of God's Messiah.
And he rides in,
seated not on a royal saddle,
but on the coats
of some of his friends.
When you come to Jesus,
this is the character
of the king that you worship.
The Lord of glory,
the one who is in control of all,
the Son of God
from all eternity,
who entered this world
through the womb of a virgin,
enters the royal city
seated on the coats
of his friends
on the back of a donkey.
Jesus is a different kind
of king.
And so,
his rule
is a different kind
of kingship.
One that is marked
by meekness
and humility
rather than military might.
One where,
when he is opposed,
he responds
by doing what?
By laying down
his life.
And Jesus comes
to each of us
with that same humility.
He doesn't bulldoze
his way into our lives.
But he gives us
an invitation.
Matthew chapter 11,
verse 28.
Come to me,
all who labor
and are heavy laden,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you
and learn from me
for I am gentle
and lowly in heart
and you will find rest
for your souls.
For my yoke is easy
and my burden
is light.
Have you taken him up
on that offer?
Have you received
that invitation
for yourself?
In a day
when people in power
seem to have
little regard
for the regular man
on the street.
Our current government
just keeps reaching
further and further
into the lives
of its citizens,
taking and taking
and taking some more,
whether it's our savings
or our freedoms
or our benefits.
They don't care.
They just want to take.
But Jesus,
the one who controls
the universe,
comes to you
and he says,
I'll be gentle with you.
I'll not take,
but I'll give.
Here's rest
for your soul.
Here's rest
for those longings
deep in your heart
that you can't satisfy
any other way.
Here it is.
And here's a law
for life
that won't burden you
but will be light
and freeing
if you live by it.
Have you come
to this king?
You do that
by repenting
of your sin,
saying sorry
for living life
on your terms,
turning your life around
and giving yourself
over to him
and in doing that
you're entrusting yourself
to his humble,
loving care.
Of course,
we don't just take him up
on this offer
but those of us
who have done that,
we must also
follow his example.
If Jesus is the humble king
that everyone
who takes his name,
that is everyone
who calls themselves
Christian,
well then we should serve
in the same kind
of humble way.
Given who he is,
Jesus could have ridden
into the city
on a war horse
but he chose
the posture
of a humble servant.
The question
we have to ask
is in what ways
is that posture
visible in our lives?
If you have taken
the name of Christ,
is that humble posture
visible in the way
that you live?
That will look different
for each of us,
of course it will,
but let's remind ourselves
that Palm Sunday
is about the humility
of our king
and those who take
his name
must follow his lead.
Well we see first
his control,
secondly his humility
and then the third detail
Luke wants us to grasp.
Perhaps the center
of the story here
is how Jesus
then receives thirdly
his worship,
his control,
his humility
and then thirdly
his worship.
It starts in verse 35
and they brought it
to Jesus,
the colt,
and throwing their cloaks
on the colt
they set Jesus on it
and as he rode along
they spread their cloaks
on the road.
This is the first
open acknowledgement
that Jesus
is their king
and the worship
actually starts
as the disciples
put their cloaks
on the colt
and then lift Jesus
onto it.
It's like when a sports team
lifts their coach
or their star player
onto their shoulders
when they win
the championship.
It's a statement
of honor
and of glory
and in fact
it's a little glimpse
of Jesus' exaltation.
They are lifting him up
and then they lay
their cloaks
on the ground.
The other gospels
of course include
the palm branches
which was an ancient
way to welcome a king.
This is a symbolic
red carpet
that is being rolled out
in front of him.
It's a way of saying
if your colt
walks on my clothes
it's not an insult
to me
it's an honor.
It's a privilege.
And then as he heads
heads down
it starts there
with him being lifted up
but then he heads
down the Mount of Olives
then the vocal praise
starts up.
Verse 37
as he was drawing near
already on the way
down the Mount of Olives
the whole multitude
of his disciples
began to rejoice
and praise God
with a loud voice
for all the mighty works
that they had seen
saying
blessed is the king
who comes in the name
of the Lord
peace in heaven
and glory
in the highest.
The disciples
proclaim him
for who he is.
He's the king
and their words
the words that they're using
are an echo
of Psalm 118
verse 26
blessed is he
who comes in the name
of the Lord
we bless you
from the house
of the Lord.
It was one of the Psalms
that the pilgrims sang
as they went up
to Jerusalem
for the feast.
They knew
that that Psalm
was the promise
of the royal king
and so here
they see Jesus
on the colt
and they say
there he is
and they change
blessed is he
to blessed is the king.
Here he is.
Here is our king.
The king that we have
waited centuries for
he's in our midst.
Jesus is God's king.
The one who is in control
the one who comes
in great humility
is God's king
and so it is fitting
that his people
would worship him.
He has brought
God's kingdom purposes
to pass.
He has brought
peace in heaven
between God
and man.
He's going to the cross
in order to accomplish that
and so the disciples
see him
and they can't
but worship him.
It is the only
fitting response
that their hearts
would be lifted
and that they would
celebrate the one
we've been waiting for.
The king of the world
is here.
Now of course
that's not true
for everyone
that was gathered
at the parade that day.
Look at verse 39.
There they are
hanging around
like a bad smell
as they always do.
The Pharisees
they're having none of it.
All of this celebration
and they're pulling
their faces down
in the worst possible look
they can get.
Tell the disciples
to shut up.
Teacher
rebuke your disciples
for all this celebration.
Of course
Jesus can't do that
can he?
He can't do it
because that option
isn't open to him
because to do that
would be actually
to engage
in a cosmic lie.
It would be
to tell an untruth
about reality.
To rebuke anyone
for giving him glory
would be to deny
his true identity
and he can't do that.
It would also be
to engage in idolatry
because he would be saying
that someone
or something else
is worthy of worship
which is also not true.
He can't do that either.
And
actually
he can't do it
because it would be
to deny the disciples
the greatest privilege
any man
any woman
boy or girl
can enjoy
and that is to give glory
to the one who stands
at the center of reality.
You know that
that is our highest privilege
that we get
to worship
the king of glory.
That is what we were made for
to glorify God
and enjoy him
forever
and to be denied
the ability
to do that
by the God of glory
would be frankly absurd.
Which is why
even if the disciples
didn't speak up
it wouldn't matter
because
verse 40
the very stones
would cry out.
Creation itself
would open its mouth
in praise
of the one
who is at the center
of all reality.
The question for us
this morning
is where
would you be standing?
if you were at the parade
that day
would you be worshipping
or would you be whinging
with the Pharisees?
And it comes down
where you stand
comes down
to what you make
of the claim
that Jesus
is God's king.
C.S. Lewis famously said
that we only have
three choices.
Either
Jesus is deluded
about himself
or he is engaged
in a grand deceit
that is
he knows
he isn't God's king
but he's playing along
so either
he thinks he is
but he's not.
He knows he isn't
but he's playing along
with this great deceit.
Either he is a lunatic
or a liar
or actually
he is who the Bible
presents him to be
and that is Lord
Lord of all.
Those are the only options
open to us.
Here's Lewis
you must make
your choice.
Either this man
was and is
the son of God
or else a madman
or something worse.
You can shut him up
for a fool
you can spit at him
and kill him
as a demon
or you can fall
at his feet
and call him
Lord and God
but let us not come
with any patronizing
nonsense about him
being a great human teacher.
He's not left
that option open to us.
He did not intend to.
So will you humble yourself
before this king?
Will you join
the parade of those
who give him glory
and praise?
He doesn't need you.
The whole of creation
even the inanimate creation
will give him
the glory he deserves
but he does invite you
into this relationship
with him.
Will you stand
at a distance
with the Pharisees
or will you follow him
in praise
with the disciples?
And here's the thing
as amazing
as that first
Palm Sunday was
Jesus has
even more glory
now
because this ride
to Jerusalem
was not to a coronation
but to a cross
where he was lifted up
to his crucifixion
and that death
was a further glory
as it purchased us
from our sins.
And then three days later
he was further glorified
as he was raised
from the dead
triumphing over death.
Death couldn't hold him.
He put death
to death.
And then again
after that
he is exalted
even further
to his father's right hand
where he now sits.
We're here this morning
he is at his father's
right hand
in glory
seated on his royal throne.
There was glory
on that first Palm Sunday
but there is even more glory
now.
The question is
what will you do
with this king?
And for those of us
who do follow him
do you see the challenge?
There is a very obvious
challenge to us
I think in the public nature
of his homage here.
There is no such thing
as private Christianity.
When you name the name
of Christ
you are submitting
your life to the king
who has total authority
as I said at the beginning.
He has total claim
over you
over every mouse click
every phone conversation
every WhatsApp message
every Instagram post
every choice
about a job
every girlfriend
boyfriend
or spouse
and every decision
about how to raise
your children
and every other
decision as well.
The Christian does
all of that
under the lordship
of King Jesus.
But that lordship
is also
radically subversive
because when we
when we claim
that he is our lord
no other authority
than Christ
is ultimate.
No government
no economic forum
no HR department
no influencer.
So where these voices
come our way
and insist that we
deny the lordship
of Christ
either by word
or by action
we have to say no.
And that's a challenge.
It is a challenge
in our day
because the pressure
to do this
is rising
in all kinds
of ways.
In our culture
in our education
in medical ethics
corporate demands
whatever it might be
when you name
the name of Christ
as Lord
no one else
is Lord.
and we must
follow God
rather than man.
But as we close
this morning
in the face
of all of this
in the face
of that challenge
I want us
to allow the fact
of Jesus kingship
to encourage us.
You see
when you want
to follow Christ
in the midst
of this growing hostility
when you get
called in by HR
because you refuse
to acknowledge
the false gods
that they want you
to acknowledge
or you get
passed over
for promotion
because you don't
play the games
that you can't play
because you're
a Christian
or even just
when you try
to share the gospel
with your friends
and neighbors
and they have
no interest
and you feel
the rejection
of that
and you just think
this gospel
is never going
to prevail.
The darkness
is too thick.
The opposition
is too hard.
Remember that
Jesus is God's
king.
He's lord of all.
There is no
greater authority
and he has come
in the flesh.
He has revealed
his kingship
here in full view
and he will build
his church
and keep
his promises.
So take heart.
Allow
Palm Sunday
to encourage you.
Be faithful.
Be courageous
and keep on.
Let's pray together.