Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Timothy Keller- The King has Come- Matthew 21:1-17



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Matthew 21: 1-17
21 Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2 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. 3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” 4 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,1 the foal of a beast of burden.’”

6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. 8 Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, x“Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” 10 And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”

Jesus Cleanses the Temple
12 And Jesus entered the temple2 and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 13 He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.”

14 And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant, 16 and they said to him, “Do you hear what these are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read,

“‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies
you have prepared praise’?”
17 And leaving them, he went out of the city to Bethany and lodged there.

This is the first time that Jesus publicly proclaims himself to be the Messiah, to the people he healed on the side of the road.
Jesus arranges his triumphful entrance.  He sends the disciples into Bethpage and Bethany to the place where he raised Lazarus from the dead to get a donkey.  It’s not normal for someone to just go to a town and ask for a donkey but people know Jesus there and they believe in him there.  Jesus knows when he sends his disciples there that those people will follow him or be there for his arrival in Jerusalem.  Scripture says that the crowd is around and behind him; they are following him into Jerusalem.
Jesus chooses a donkey to ride in on, servants ride donkeys.  He doesn’t choose a war horse or anything prestigious.  Jesus is sending a mixed message; he is king, but riding in on a donkey.  Verse 5 it says- behold your king comes to you gentle.
Jesus is tremendously humble but not modest.  He continually makes incredible claims.  He goes into God’s house and says it’s his house.  He says crown me or kill me and he says it to everyone.

Jesus isn’t magical power- if you aren’t submitting and obeying and delighting in the Lord he is nothing.  He is not magic he is king.

Any general who rides into battle on a donkey is going to be slaughtered, Jesus comes in on a donkey meek and vulnerable.

Money changes- using God instead of letting God use them.

Gospel- Sin is putting yourself in the place of the king, salvation is the king putting himself in the place of the servant.

We are not saved by strength and our own efforts we are saved by grace.
You’ll be bold but not humble, because you believe think you’re living up to standards
You’ll be humble not bold, because you feel like you’re not living up to standards
If something bad happens in your life you’ll either think, well yeah I deserved that because I wasn’t living up to a standard or you’ll be angry with God because you believe you were living up to a certain standard and you don’t deserve bad things to happen to you.

You have to see that when bad things happen it is God doing something in your life through it.  Recognize you are a sinner but you are saved by grace.


Palms- when Jesus comes back completely, when his kingship is absolute this world will burst into all of what it’s supposed to be.  

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