Bethel Lutheran Church - Pastor Luke Bernthal
Soli Deo Gloria

Crossroad 7 – The Triumphal Entry Into Jerusalem ; Matthew 21: 1 - 11; 2008-03-16

The Bulletin (order of service)

Text: Matthew 21: 1 - 11;
1 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, "Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, tell him that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away." 4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: 5 "Say to the Daughter of Zion, 'See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.'" 6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them. 8 A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Hosanna in the highest!" 10 When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, "Who is this?" 11 The crowds answered, "This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee."

But that really wasn’t my most embarrassing moment in a vehicle. It was the station wagon my dad had around that same time that I think even embarrassed my mom. It was an old red VW diesel wagon. The body was in pretty good shape and my dad loved it because it was a stick shift, had a (manual) sunroof, and got like 150 miles per gallon on the highway (< exaggeration, of course—even the Germans can’t produce that kind of fuel efficiency). Ironically, the kid who owned the car before my dad was some sort of hippie/snowboarder dude and had covered the back window with crazy decals like a Grateful Dead sticker with a VW symbol inside it (my dad always intended to remove the stickers, but just never got around to it). So when Pastor Bernthal was visiting members or just cruising around town he had these crazy stickers on the back of his car…quite a contrast from the type of man my dad is, let me tell you! Anyway, as the VW wagon was on its last legs and while my dad was still in denial that its end was near he was driving me to work (because my own junker wagon was in the shop). His wagon had been spewing an excessive amount of smoke for the past few days and his excuse that “It’s just because it’s a diesel” wasn’t working on any of us. Well, that evening when we were about two blocks from my work we were stopped at one of the busiest intersections in town right next to the mall; you know the one with the longest stoplight? Well, that wagon started spewing so much smoke that I started realizing we were slowly beginning to be enveloped in a cloud. I could see the heads of every driver around us quickly looking in our direction with a surprised/panic look that you get when you think you see something on fire right next to you! Thankfully the car wasn’t on fire, just dying a horrible, smoke-filled death—and inside I felt like I was too as I slouched further and further down in my seat. That stoplight seemed to take hours to finally change and by the time it did and we started moving again I not only couldn’t see the cars that were right next to us, but the giant mall that was directly to our right was blocked out by the smokescreen as well! When you’re an 18 year old kid that kind of a situation kinda “cramps your style! It doesn’t get much more embarrassing than that!

Well, how embarrassing was the “transportation” Jesus was riding on this “Crossroad” which we are considering on this Palm Sunday morning? Couldn’t He have found anything better to ride on as He came to this one rare “bright spot” amongst the dark, lonely, and often painful “Crossroads” we have seen Jesus travel during this Lenten season? Even in His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem we see that there is an element of humility, perhaps even an element of embarrassment or confusion for His followers, as He enters the city triumphantly, yes, but on a donkey?!?! And not just a donkey; a “baby” donkey—“a colt, the foal of a donkey” just as Zechariah had prophesied (Matthew 21:5; Zechariah 9:9). How kingly, how majestic and dignified do you think Jesus looked riding that baby donkey into Jerusalem’s city gates? Feet probably dragging along the ground, or perhaps His knees were way up by His shoulders as He rides this ridiculously small beast of burden. Imagine for a minute if I had entered the worship service this morning riding this little toddler’s trike (visual aid). What sort of thoughts and feelings would you have had? Respect? Awe? Reverence? Praise? Probably not, right? You’d probably be wondering if Pastor Luke had gotten too much sun during yesterday’s workday, or maybe you wouldn’t be surprised at all and this would just confirm your suspicions that the pastor has been losing it for a while now!

Yet, this is the unusual scene, the contradictory “Crossroad” that Jesus traveled on Palm Sunday. He rides an ordinary beast of burden rather than a magnificent white stallion, as other kings of His time would have done. He sits upon the garments and cloaks of His followers instead of wearing a kingly robe or royal crown. His attendants were mostly Galilean fishermen instead of a powerful looking armor-plated, weapon-bearing regiment of soldiers. This “Crossroad” certainly did not look much like a royal procession. And yet there is an undeniable and obvious majesty about Jesus even amidst the embarrassingly humble method of transportation into the Holy City. Despite this the crowds present were moved to shout, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Hosanna in the highest!" (Matthew 21:9).

One thing is certain, however, when we look at the unusual manner in which Jesus entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday: He was plainly showing that He had no intentions of setting Himself up as an earthly king. He had NOT come primarily to be hailed as a king and certainly not to “take over” the government from the Romans and establish an earthly kingdom of Israel, as many had hoped. No, Jesus had made it very clear as He journeyed toward this triumphant “Crossroad” that He had come suffer, die, and rise again on the third day. He had told His disciples this at least three times along the way to Jerusalem (cf. Matthew 16:21; 17:22-23; and 20:17-19). The type of “King” that Jesus had come to be was unusual indeed, but He is just the type of “King” that mankind needs! He came to conquer the spiritual enemies that oppressed and enslaved us; enemies—sin, death, hell, and Satan himself—which we were powerless to even fight against, much less defeat on our own. Jesus rode into Jerusalem triumphantly—not to ascend a throne but to climb upon a crude wooden cross; not to wear a crown of gold and jewels, but of thorns; not by shedding the blood of His enemies, but by shedding His own blood! Yes, Jesus was and is a rather “unusual” King. One Lutheran commentator once wrote, “The kings of earth conquer by oppression. Jesus shall be victorious while He would seem to surrender” (Ylvisaker, quoted by Prof. Harold Buls, http://kuster-web.net/buls_notes/). Yet, through His lowliness and humiliation, through His innocent suffering and death, Jesus would establish an eternal kingdom of greater glory and majesty than any earthly kingdom ever!

Do you think the crowds that lined this “Crossroad” that day understood all this about King Jesus? How much did they truly understand about Jesus, the Messiah? How much did they understand about the true nature of His kingdom (cf. the words of the crowd in our text, Matthew 21:10-11)? How about the “crowds” of our day? How much do you think the masses understand about Easter, which I would guess the majority of people in our country will celebrate next Sunday? How many do you think even know that today is Palm Sunday, much less understand the meaning behind Jesus lowly, yet triumphant and glorious entry into Jerusalem?

What about us? Do we understand and fully appreciate the kind of King Jesus is for us? Not a “genie in a bottle” wish-granter who does whatever we ask whether it’s good for us or not, but a King who rules our hearts and lives—and yes even the universe itself—for our spiritual and eternal good; to give us an eternal hope and future in heaven. Do we fully grasp the fact that Jesus wasn’t “embarrassed” to step down from His heavenly throne and become a lowly man to live the perfect life we have failed to live? Or that He wasn’t “embarrassed” by His “transportation” that Palm Sunday and rode a baby donkey willingly into the very city in which He would be crucified in just a few short days? Or even that Jesus wasn’t “embarrassed” to take the shameful death of a criminal—the cross—to take our punishment, our guilt, and our pain so that we would have full forgiveness and live in His kingdom of heaven forever? Remember those glorious words from our New Testament Scripture reading: “…Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name” (Philippians 2:5-9).

Thank the Lord that Jesus wasn’t too “embarrassed” to be our lowly, humble, yet glorious and triumphant King! May we never be “embarrassed” of Him, or the mode of “transportation” He has provide for us to reach heaven (His own suffering, death, and resurrection). "Hosanna to the Son of David!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Hosanna in the highest!" (Matthew 21:9). Amen.