Palm Sunday
Sermon Series: Palm Sunday
Sermon Titled: Foretold Glory
This week is Palm Sunday, a time set aside in the church to remember the triumphal entry of the Christ riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, chasing out the money changers and openly establishing for all to see His Kingship and glory.
Below I have included an excerpt from last year’s Palm Sunday and pray that you would take some time to read and meditate on what is being said…
Mark 11:27-33
27 They arrived again in Jerusalem, and while Jesus was walking in the temple courts, the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders came to him. 28 “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you authority to do this?”
29 Jesus replied, “I will ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things.30 John’s baptism—was it from heaven, or of human origin? Tell me!”
31 They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’32 But if we say, ‘Of human origin’ …” (They feared the people, for everyone held that John really was a prophet.)
33 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”
Jesus said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”
It has long been the purpose and position of man to question God for his methods. We often ask him of his purpose and position without concern for the kingdom, rather a deeper concern for how it affects our lives, even more we ask with reason to excuse ourselves of our infirmities and leave responsibility by the wayside.
Here we see the conscience of the Pharisees begin to betray them. They knew they believed John the Baptist to be of God, their hearts knew the truth of his ministry, but this Jesus he represented was not what they expected, nor wanted. He was not the earthly king with the iron fist silencing his enemies and raising his people to high power of earthly fame and notoriety.
He was instead a humble servant of mankind, sent by God to redeem them, love them, and gift them with salvation!
They could not say that John was not of God for fear that the people would overtake them and destroy them, for the people loved and respected John’s ministry. Much like the scene from Gladiator when Maximus reveals himself in the arena to the dismay of Emperor Commodus, everything in him wishes to put the thumb down and destroy the gladiator once and for all but the fear of the people keeps him from doing so.
See here how Jesus makes use of man’s carnal fear to keep the world in order. He does not give an answer to their question, they were not seeking truth anyhow, only victory for their argument. What Christ does by his wisdom is to silence the ignorance of foolish men (1 Peter 2:15).
Truthfully, all mankind would know the authority by which he walked this earth soon enough…when on Easter Sunday he would rise and destroy deaths grip on man and a new covenant would be made between man and his creator!
Peace,
Nathan Bentley