April 5, 2020
WHAT IF JESUS…? – Part 4

“What If Jesus Wasn’t Recognized as King on Palm Sunday?”

Our story begins much earlier, with the affirmation that God, the Creator, was also

of all Creation, including human beings.

The LORD reigns; he is robed in majesty; the LORD is robed; he has put on strength as his belt. Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved. Your throne is established from of old; you are from everlasting. —Psalms 93:1-2 (ESV)

Over time the Jews were drawn to what other nations had, believing that having a

king would be easier and better.

And the LORD said to Samuel, ‘Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. —1 Samuel 8:7 (ESV)

God had Samuel anoint a young shepherd named

to be king, a little over a thousand years before the time of Jesus.

Messiah (Hebrew) = anointed one; over time it primarily signified the person anointed to be

Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed [David] in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David from that day forward.… —1 Samuel 16:13 (ESV)

God promised Israel that a new anointed king, from the line of David, would rise up to

Israel and establish his rightful place on Israel’s throne.

Out of the stump of David’s family will grow a shoot—yes, a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root. And the Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. He will delight in obeying the LORD. He will not judge by appearance nor make a decision based on hearsay. He will give justice to the poor and make fair decisions for the exploited. The earth will shake at the force of his word, and one breath from his mouth will destroy the wicked. He will wear righteousness like a belt and truth like an undergarment. —Isaiah 11:1-5 (NLT)

In the centuries that followed Israel’s exile to Babylon and then their return to Israel, they kept looking for this

.

The Jews’ image of this Messiah drifted to an earthly

leader who would free them from physical captivity.

Messiah (Hebrew) = Christ (Greek)

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, ‘Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.’” —Matthew 2:1-2 (ESV)

Now when John [the Baptist] heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to [Jesus], ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’” —Matthew 11:2-3 (ESV)

Jesus discouraged people he healed from

about what he had done.

[Jesus] said to [his disciples], ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter replied, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ And Jesus answered him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. —Matthew 16:15-17 (ESV)

The time finally came, when Jesus allowed people to acknowledge that he was the Christ, the

, on that first Palm Sunday.

Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to 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, “The Lord needs them,” and he will send them at once.’ This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, 5‘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. —Matthew 21:1-7 (ESV)

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! —Matthew 21:8-9 (ESV)

Most people in the crowd probably only had one cloak, but they “spread their cloaks on the road” as an historic sign of

.

When Judas Maccabaeus arrived in Jerusalem, after conquering a pagan army that had oppressed Israel, he was welcomed into the city by a crowd waving

Reveal Answer

.

“The Son of David” was a clear reference to a

ancestor of King David.

“Hosanna” (save now) = a cry of welcome and acclamation, often to a

Jesus was being welcomed by the crowds as their king, even if they didn’t understand what that truly meant, for Jesus the Christ would conquer not the Romans but

and

Reveal Answer

.

The promise of Scripture is that one day Jesus will return and fully

his Kingdom here on earth.

Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever. —Revelation 11:15 (ESV)

And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, ‘Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. —Revelation 12:9-10 (ESV)

They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful. —Revelation 17:14 (ESV)

Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. —Philippians 2:9-11 (ESV)

Now [Christ] is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come. God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church. And the church is his body; it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself. —Ephesians 1:21-23 (NLT)

WHAT IF JESUS WASN’T RECOGNIZED AS KING ON PALM SUNDAY?

1.Sin, death and Satan aren’t

.

2.Jesus doesn’t have

for our lives, but neither do we have a living hope.

Jesus: Pray then like this:… Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. —Matthew 6:9-10 (ESV)

We are, essentially, still

, still waiting for a king to free us, and we remain under the dominance of sin and the fear of death.

3.Our

aren’t shaped by Jesus.

We’re stuck in a much more dog-eat-dog world, where everyone looks out for number one and sees little value in

our neighbors.

4.Our lives are missing eternal

.

Jesus: … All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age. —Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV)

Christ has given you and me the opportunity to join in his

of the world, and if we understand that, then every day, every moment, is filled with significance and importance!

We have

to proclaim, regardless of how this world around us shakes out.

See Gateway’s Find It page at gateway-community.org/find-it for daily resources to help you stay connected with God and with others.

Good Friday: What If Jesus Didn’t Die On The Cross?