Hello, This year we have having more of a Palm Sunday focus instead of a Passion Sunday focus. However, as with most Palm Sunday sermons based on the Gospel text, this sermon can work for any of the Palm Sunday Gospel texts (Mt 21:1-11, Mk 11:1-11, John 12:12-19) The readings are:
OT: Isaiah 45:22-25 Epistle: Hebrews 12:1-3 Gospel: Luke 19:28-40 Intro In a kingdom, it is the king who leads his troops into battle, for the king is, above all else, the defender of his people. Kings of old were like the great King David, who rose to prominence by slaying the Goliaths who threatened their nation. Such was also the way of the Roman Empire and their emperors, the world into which our Savior was born. This imperial-military leadership continued in the centuries after our Lord’s ascension into heaven, as the life-bestowing Word of our Savior’s resurrection continued to permeate the world. This imperial-military role even continued as the Roman Empire weakened in Rome, but continued strong in Byzantium, later called Constantinople. Main Body This dual role of ruler and military leader also reflects the model found in God’s leadership. God’s covenant people, Israel, knew this, as the Old Testament affirms. Their Lord, who was a great King over all the earth, who rode on the cherubim, who made the Ark of the Covenant His regal footstool, was also a great warrior. After the Lord delivered His people from the Egyptians at the Red Sea, Moses led the people of Israel in a victory song. They sang with joy: I will sing to the LORD, for He is highly exalted. Both horse and rider He has hurled into the sea. The LORD is my strength and my song; He has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise Him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him. The LORD is a warrior; the LORD is His name (Exodus 15:1-3). Indeed, God’s identity as a great warrior and military leader is intertwined into His very name. Yet today, we remember our beloved Lord Jesus Christ, our King, who rode in regal procession into the city of Jerusalem. And we remember also those who received Him with shouts of victory and triumph. Today, we also join in their praises: “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord.” 2,000 years ago, the people cast their cloaks onto the ground, tossed branches, and waved palms to honor Jesus, as they knew the people welcomed conquering heroes in times past. The air bristled with energy that day. Besides palm branches, the people were most likely hiding knives and other weaponry in their clothing. Anticipation filled the air; it crackled with danger and suspense. The crowds who greeted Jesus when He entered Jerusalem were ready for a fight. They wanted to be free from Rome’s oppression. And now it seemed that their freedom was finally at hand. And so the people chanted Psalm 118 to victorious King Jesus riding into Jerusalem. “Hosanna, O Lord, save us. Grant us success. Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord.” The people wanted a holy war. And Jesus was going to deliver--just not in the way they had imagined. Was this any way to wage holy war? Yes it was, when the war is against sin and death--our great enemy--and when it is against the Law that convicts, kills, and condemns us. The people were expecting the revolution to begin. King Jesus had come to His city, and now it was time for holy war. God was finally going to free His people. And the people’s expectations of freedom were correct. Except that Jesus was going to deliver His people from a different bondage, from a different oppression. Indeed, Jesus was going to deliver His people from an even greater enemy than the Empire of Rome. Yes, our Savior wanted all to see that He rode into Jerusalem willingly, that He came as King to fulfill Prophet Zechariah’s words. 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, on a colt, the foal of a donkey (Zechariah 9:9). Our Lord comes to Holy Week of His own free will, fully knowing what lies ahead. Be not deceived! He comes, not to be defeated but to conquer; not to be crushed, but to crush! Our Lord comes to seize the day and win the victory. Earlier in St. Luke’s Gospel, King Jesus had said that it was impossible for a prophet to die outside Jerusalem. And so Jesus rode into Jerusalem to do what He came to do--to die and win the victory. He came as the mighty Warrior to make peace, peace between God and His fallen creation. But know this: Jesus does not come to negotiate peace. He does not come to compromise. Only unconditional surrender of the enemy will do. And so Jesus comes to conquer, and by doing so, He will give out His peace, the peace of God that surpasses all understanding. But the peace Jesus brings will be a bloody peace in Old Covenant terms. Jesus, the Lamb of God, comes into Jerusalem to carry the sins of the world on His back. Jesus comes to conquer; He comes to be the Scapegoat bearing all your sins, all my sins, and all the sins of all people. Jesus comes to be slaughtered and bled dry on the altar of God. That’s how He will win the victory! But why does our Lord come riding on a donkey? He comes to fulfill the prophetic Word and to assert His messianic kingship before all. But why did the prophetic Word include this donkey? It was to display the humility and meekness of our Savior, that’s why. But there’s more to it, much more! For the donkey our Lord Jesus rode into Jerusalem on was an untamed, never-ridden donkey. And this was not coincidental. For Jesus didn't come simply to be the King of the Jews. No, He came also to be the King of the Gentiles, to be the King of all nations. That’s why Jesus came riding on an untamed and uninstructed donkey. It showed that others, those who were also untamed and uninstructed, Gentiles, were also of His kingdom. As the donkey was visibly brought into Christ’s kingdom, so also were the Gentiles now to be brought from unbelief into faith. Yes, our Lord came boldly to wage a holy war. Already, He had fired His first salvo; the preemptive strike had taken place. Shortly before Palm Sunday, death heard the voice of the Son of God. The voice of the Lord that split the cedars of Lebanon, the voice of the Lord that divided the flame of fire, that same voice of the Lord had penetrated the darkness of death. Jesus shook the fortress of death with three words: “Lazarus come forth!” And despite all its effort, death was powerless before the voice of God. Death could not keep its icy grip on Lazarus. Jesus had dealt death its preemptive deathblow. The demons were furious, but the righteous were excited in anticipation! Lazarus was there, held tight in the power of death’s grip, but now he is alive, for Jesus has called him back from the dead! Now Christ the King comes in His own flesh to the conflict. He rides into Jerusalem to the praise of the people who had lined the street with their own clothes. He is mounted on the throne of a never-ridden donkey, and He is heading for one place: Golgotha, the place of the skull, the place of death. Christ comes to smash His enemies with the Cross of His almighty power. That’s why--the only reason why--Christ triumphantly enters Jerusalem. He comes to engage the Evil One in a battle to the death at the cross. Does your soul feel lifeless and dead? Does the stench of sin make you stink like Lazarus? Do not fear! Christ raises the dead from death. For even death is no obstacle to His great love and power. Death in all its putrid power cannot overcome the saving work of Christ. Do the satanic legions still oppress you? Do you grieve at the power of your sinful passions? Do you feel the grip of death creaking in your bones? Break forth in song! Shout Hosanna! For your King, the humble and meek Jesus, has come in the Name of the Lord to triumph over the Satan, sin, and death, to blot out the record of your transgressions, and to put death to death. Today, we journey in our mind’s eye with Christ to His Passion. We will sit with Him in the upper room. We will stand before His cross. We will chant at His tomb. And we will find ourselves together in the night of His resurrection from the dead! To the immortal Lord, who has bound hell, slain death, and raised the world, may we give Him our best, even our very selves. And this day, we send forth to Him our praise, waving our palms, and singing to Him, “Hosanna to the Son of David. Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord.” Conclusion For our Lord wages holy war to save the world, even to save the likes of you. This is our Lord, who “emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death--even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:7-8). Yes, indeed, hosanna to the Son of David! Hosanna to the King! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord. Amen. -- Rich Futrell, Pastor Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Kimberling City, MO Where we are to receive and confess the faith of the Church (in and with the Augsburg Confession): The faith once delivered to the saints, the faith of Christ Jesus, His Word of the Gospel, His full forgiveness of sins, His flesh and blood given and poured out for us, and His gracious gift of life for body, soul, and spirit. ___________________________________________________________________ 'CAT 41 Sermons & Devotions' consists of works that are, unless otherwise noted, the copyrighted property of the various authors; posting of such gives members of this list implied consent for redistribution _with_attribution_ unless otherwise specified by the author (as long as no charge is made for the work and it is not made part of a compilation), as well as for quoting or use in a congregational setting _with_or_without_attribution_. Note: This list's default reply is to the *poster*, NOT the list. 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