Yielding to peer pressure.

Q: What does the Bible say about Jesus's entry into Jerusalem?

Jesus's entry into Jerusalem fulfilled the prophecy in Zechariah that he would come as a humble king, riding on a donkey. The Bible teaches that Jesus's entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday was a profound fulfillment of the messianic prophecy found in Zechariah 9:9. It emphasizes not only his kingship but also his humility, as he rode on a donkey, signifying a king bringing peace rather than warfare. The people of Israel recognized this prophecy and anticipated a savior who would deliver them from their physical enemies, although they misunderstood the true nature of his kingdom—a kingdom that is spiritual and eternal, established in righteousness and justice.

Q: How do we know the prophecy of Jesus's kingship is true?

The fulfillment of the prophecy about Jesus's entry into Jerusalem is evidence of its truth, as foretold 500 years prior. We know the prophecy concerning Jesus's kingship is true because it was clearly fulfilled in the historical event of his entry into Jerusalem. Matthew 21 details how Jesus intentionally orchestrated circumstances to fulfill Zechariah 9:9, highlighting God's sovereignty and faithfulness to his word. The anticipation of a king from the line of David, who would establish an everlasting kingdom, was a central belief among the Jewish people. The very nature of this fulfillment—an entry marked by humility and peace—contrasts sharply with earthly expectations of power, thus proving the divine nature of Jesus's kingship.

Q: Why is Jesus's humility important for Christians?

Jesus's humility teaches Christians about servanthood and the nature of true leadership in the kingdom of God. Jesus's humility is vital for Christians as it sets a profound example of leadership that defies worldly expectations. In Matthew 21:5, he rides into Jerusalem on a donkey, a symbol of humility and peace rather than a war horse symbolizing power. This calls Christians to embody a spirit of servanthood, echoing Philippians 2:5-7, where believers are urged to have the same mindset as Christ, who humbled himself for the sake of others. Acknowledging Jesus as a humble savior helps believers understand that true greatness in God's kingdom comes through meekness, service, and bearing burdens for others instead of seeking self-exaltation.

So I'm sure you're all well aware today is known by the church as Palm Sunday, recognising or remembering the time that the Lord Jesus Christ entered into Jerusalem fulfilling the prophecy in Zechariah that their king would come, that he would be seated upon an ass, the cult, the fold of an ass. As we looked at in Sunday school, we saw that this prophecy in Zechariah was spoken about 500 years before the Lord Jesus Christ came into Jerusalem.

And so the people of Israel were very aware about this prophecy. It was a prophecy that they were looking forward to, for they were hoping that their king would come. They were hoping for a great king that would come and deliver them from their enemies. If you remember the kings in the Old Testament, King David, King Solomon, and others, how they fought many, many battles to try and overcome the enemies of God. Some of those battled as they won, some of them they lost because of their sinful behaviour and God brought judgement upon them and so they were looking for this king that would come and deliver them from their enemies. prophecy in Zechariah says, Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!

Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, thy king cometh unto thee, he is just, and having salvation, lowly, riding upon an ass, and upon a colt, a foal of an ass. And as we read through Matthew 21, it seems that this is one of the only prophecies that Jesus literally goes out of his way to fulfil. It is written that he sends his disciples to go over into the village against you and there you will find an ass and a colt tied. loose them and bring them to me.

The Lord Jesus Christ is setting the scene for what he is about to do, to fulfil this prophecy, getting everything in order as he begins to make his journey down from the Mount of Olives and down into Jerusalem, as he begins to show the people that he is that King. that king that had been prophesied, the king that had been spoken to, to King David.

We read that they cried out, Hosanna to the King of David. If you remember, as the Lord spoke to King David, King David wanted to build a house for the Lord. The Lord would not allow him to build him a house because of the amount of blood he had shed in his war, but his son Solomon was going to build him a house. But the Lord says to him, I will build you a house. God promises to King David that his throne would be a continued throne, a kingdom that would be established forever. In 2 Samuel chapter 7 verse 13 it says, and he shall build a house for my name, Solomon, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

Verse 16, and thy house and thy kingdom shall be established forever before thee, thy throne shall be established forever. Then went King David in and sat down, sat before the Lord, and he said, Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house that thou hast brought me hither to? And this was yet a small thing in thy sight, O Lord God, but thou hast spoken also of thy servant's health for a great while to come. And is this And is this the manner of men, O Lord God?

And so David recognised that something miraculous had just been prophesied to him, that the Lord was going to establish his throne, his lineage, not just for a generation and a generation, but forever. We know that this world does not continue forever. Therefore, something miraculous was to take place, that the Messiah was going to be born of the line of David and that his kingdom, as Jesus says, my kingdom is not of this world, that his kingdom was going to be established forever. And if we read, we go back to the prophecy of Zacharias, you see there of this kingdom, that this kingdom, not only was it going to continue forever, but it was to be a kingdom without limits, without bounds. Every kingdom has its borders. The kingdom of England, we have our borders. Israel had its borders. Every country has its borders and those who cross over, as we see the immigrants crossing over, they enter into the land of England.

But this kingdom that Christ was or is to establish, that the Messiah is to establish, it's unlimited and it's without borders. goes on in the prophecy, and I will cut off the chariots from Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem and the battle bow shall be cut off. There's going to be no war in this kingdom.

If you look at the world today, what do we see? Wars and rumours of wars everywhere, upset, Everywhere threatenings, everywhere hatred, everywhere divisions. What does the Bible tell us? This world groans under the weight of sin. What's it waiting for? It's waiting for the adoption. It's waiting for the restoration, the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And so he says about this kingdom, the kingdom of Christ, that it's going to be without war. and he shall speak peace to the heathen and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, from the river even to the ends of the earth. This kingdom is going to be a peaceful kingdom, a kingdom that is going to gather in the heathen, the Gentiles, those who were outside of the original covenant are now going to be ushered in and this beautiful gospel of peace it's going to penetrate through the whole world, it's going to break down borders and boundaries and it's going to bring peace in the hearts of those who receive it, peace between God and man, peace between one and another. If you remember in the book of Revelation it speaks about heaven, it says that there'll be no more sea, no more sea. What does C signify? A boundary, a separation, a distance, but not in heaven. No, not in heaven. It's going to be one people, one nation, one kingdom.

With the King of Peace, the Lord Jesus Christ, a united, a kingdom without tears, sorrow and sadness, a kingdom without pain and suffering, a kingdom where we will dwell with God. kingdom without darkness. So this great prophecy that Zechariah was led to prophesy spoke of the son of David, that he was going to bring peace, that he was going to have a character of humility, and he was going to be riding the foal of an ass. We saw this morning in the Sunday school a picture of King Charles riding a horse. The kings of this world want to present themselves as majestic and powerful, wealthy, But the Lord Jesus Christ came to Jerusalem riding a donkey, not even a fully grown donkey, but a young donkey, a donkey that had never been ridden before. The king of kings made himself a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, entered into Jerusalem riding upon an ass, signifying the type of king that he is, the king of peace. the Lord Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, the true King, the true Son of David.

When we look at somebody like Donald Trump, we may say that this man is like a true leader. You know, he knows what he wants and he's not ashamed to push forward with those things that he believes. You think of Alexander the Great, a true leader, able to subdue nations and nations and nations. A charismatic leader, able to rally people around him. We see the Lord Jesus Christ, what type of king is he? Filled with pride and arrogance like Donald Trump or lowly, humble and just?

The prophecy says, Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, thy king comes unto thee. The words Zion and Jerusalem were literal places. Jerusalem, the city of peace. it became through the scriptures personified as it were to the people of God, the people of Zion, the children of Zion, the children of Jerusalem, the daughter of Jerusalem that your king is coming.

It shows the personal way in which God's relationship is with his people. Oh daughter, the relationship that God has with his people, the relationship that Jesus Christ has with his people. If you go right back to the early times in Exodus, God speaks of Israel as his son, his firstborn son. The Lord Jesus Christ, his church is spoken of as his bride. And here the people of God are spoken of as his daughter. But he has that affectionate connection with them, that relationship, that close relationship with them. And that their king was going to be brought to them.

And he wasn't going to be an arrogant, power-hungry king. He wasn't going to be a biased king. He was going to be a just king. He was going to possess the very nature of holy God himself. God who is just. He is righteous. That means that those who are good, he will deal rightly with, but also those who are wicked, he will deal rightly with. The justice of God should bring fear into our hearts, for God must punish sin. A just God, a just Christ, a just justice system must punish sin. And so this king that was going to be brought to the people of Israel was going to be a king who was just.

He was going to hold the law in a right balance. He was not going to suppress the poor and elevate the rich, but he was going to have a balanced scale of good and of evil. What does the world say? The Bible tells us that the world called evil good and good evil. It is a corrupt system.

But the system of Christ, the kingdom of Christ is a just system. Even in salvation, God remains just in punishing his beloved son for the sins of his people. Therefore, Before the law, we are able to be taken, we remain guiltless because Christ has paid the price for sin.

But only is he going to be just, that his kingdom is going to be ruled perfectly, but he is going to have salvation. Not that he is going to bring salvation as the Jews thought, Remember salvation doesn't necessarily mean deliverance from sin, it can be deliverance from enemies. And so the Jews believed that Jesus was going to deliver them from their enemies, their physical enemies. But it says he is having salvation, that salvation is in himself. And he's going to give. salvation.

As the Lord Jesus Christ entered into Jerusalem, he's not coming from a victory, but he is going to be victorious. There's a lot of things in that week before him that he had to pass through. As we looked at last week, as he entered into the Garden of Gethsemane and being in an agony, he prayed more earnestly. All of these things were before the Lord Jesus Christ, yet he enters into Jerusalem as a triumphant king. In the mind of Jesus Christ, the battle was still before him.

You see how the Jews had it all the wrong way round. They wanted a physical king to deliver them from their physical problems but they did not realise the extent of the corruption of their own hearts. That first must be dealt with. That is what Jesus came to deal with, the corruption of the heart, the root cause of the matter. That is where his salvation was to be delivered. That is where his salvation was to be brought to, the heart of man.

The Bible tells us, doesn't it, the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. But the Lord Jesus Christ came to change our hearts, to take away our desperately wicked, hard hearts, our stony hearts. and to give us a heart of flesh, he has salvation in himself. And we looked at Jonah last week and he says, as he's down in the belly of hell, as Jesus Christ was there in the tomb for those three days, it was there down in the belly of hell, Jonah said, salvation is of the Lord. Here is this king, this humble king, riding upon a donkey, entering into Jerusalem. And he has salvation in himself.

And he is lowly. He is meek, as Matthew puts it. He is meek. The word here, lowly, has a sense that has been made low. He has been brought low. We think of what Isaiah prophesies about the Lord Jesus Christ, despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. The Lord Jesus Christ, he has been made low. was in glory. He was, the Bible says, he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor. He was in glory, yet he made himself lower than the angels.

He has been made low through poverty, through affliction, and through bearing the weight of his people. And he comes to these, the prophecy is that he is to come, this king, this humble, this just, this king bringing salvation, having salvation in himself, is going to appear riding a donkey.

And so the Lord Jesus Christ, knowing that he is that king, enters into Jerusalem and the people begin to praise him. The prophecy says, Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Matthew says, And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way, and cut down branches from the trees, and strewed them in the way. the multitudes went before and that followed cried saying Hosanna to the son of David. Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.

They were to rejoice. So they saw this king coming They recognized him as a king. They had seen him raise Lazarus. They had seen him do all the miracles. They now see him riding upon a donkey heading towards Jerusalem. They see now this is a fulfillment of the prophecy.

All of our problems are going to be over. We're going to be delivered from the Romans. All of our enemies are going to scatter. We're going to have a king that can provide us with food. We have a king who can who can heal people, who can have a king, who can speak wonderful words.

And so they're all now excited, crying out, Hosanna, Hosanna, save us. So I looked up this word, Hosanna, it comes from a Hebrew, the Hebrew word meaning, meaning save us. If you're drowning or something, you would cry out this Hebrew word, Hosanna. But over time, the meaning changed. And it came to mean salvation comes.

So when they saw the Lord Jesus Christ and they cried out Hosanna, in their minds they were thinking salvation has come. And not the type of salvation that you and I hope for, not the type of salvation that you and I worship God today for. but a salvation to be delivered from the oppression of a physical enemy. You and I, we know that Jesus Christ came to deliver us from the oppression of a spiritual enemy. He came to deliver us from the kingdom of darkness, to separate us from the chains of Satan and to bring us into his marvellous kingdom, the kingdom of light. And as Jesus sees all this taking place, the people shouting Hosanna to the son of David. Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord.

Jesus is not looking or hearing what they're doing. What is he doing? He's looking at their hearts. You can imagine for a moment the disciples disciples as they see all that is taking place, the excitement that is taking place. You can imagine that now their dreams have come true. Remember that they were fighting.

Who's going to be the greatest? We want to sit one on the left hand, one on the right hand with you in your kingdom. Jesus says you don't know what you're asking. And now they're thinking, all these people rushing to the Lord Jesus, crying, Hosanna, Hosanna. Now is the time of this physical kingdom. But Jesus is looking at their hearts. He's not being drawn aside into an illusion that these people are truly worshipping him.

Luke 19, it tells us there. And when he, verse 41, and when he was come near, he beheld the city and wept over it. The same account. He's coming toward Jerusalem. They're crying out, Hosanna, Hosanna, peace in heaven and glory in the highest. Jesus looks at the city and weeps over it.

A lot of fanfare, a lot of commotion, but not real worship. They knew the right words to say, but they didn't understand the true meaning of the words. Jesus says, And when he came near, he beheld the city and wept over it, saying, If thou had known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace, but now are they hid from thy eyes. For the day shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side. and shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee, and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another, because thou knowest not the time of thy visitation. What a solemn statement. All of this seeming worship Yet in the eyes of Jesus Christ, it meant nothing. He came unto his own and his own received him not.

70 AD, what happened to Jerusalem? Completely destroyed by the Romans. What happened to the temple? Not one stone upon another. Completely brought down to the ground. Nothing left. What happened to the Jews that were there inside? Over a million of them. Slaughtered. Why? Because they rejected the King.

Jesus knew it was just a fanfare, a veneer. They were swept along with the crowd. They wanted something physical, but he came with the spiritual salvation. They were not interested in a spiritual salvation because they were self-righteous. They had no need of a saviour because they were good enough themselves. You see, we can't hide who we are from the Lord Jesus Christ. We may come here today, speak good words, sing the hymns, listen to the word, but we can't hide who we are from the Lord Jesus Christ. He sees the heart.

One day we may be crying, Hosanna, save us, praise God, salvation. And by the end of the week, We're crying with the Jews, crucify him, crucify him. These are not the same people in the same city who at the beginning of the week crying Hosanna and at the end of the week crying crucify him, crucify him.

We have no king but Caesar. the very same words that Zechariah says, Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold thy King! And it was the preparation of the Passover and about the sixth hour And he said unto the Jews, behold thy king. What did they say? Gone are the Hosannas.

They cry out, away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate said unto them, shall I crucify your king? The chief priest answered, we have no king but Caesar. then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified and they took Jesus and led him away and he bearing his cross went forth to the place called the place of the skull which is called in the Hebrew tongue Golgotha and they went There they crucified him and two others with him, one either side and Jesus in the midst. And Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross. The writing was, Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.

You see, as Jesus entered into Jerusalem upon a donkey, a beast of burden, He's been carried there, he enters into the temple, he exposes their hypocrisy. A week later, Jesus is walking out bearing his cross, the burden bearer. Those who are one minute crying Hosanna are the next minute crying crucify him, crucify him. But Jesus knew. He was able to look into their hearts and see their hypocrisy. That he is the King of Kings.

We have to be careful, you know. We can't swing in our Christianity. We cannot bow to peer pressure. We read the Gospels, it tells us that it was the chief priests and the scribes, they incited the people against the Lord Jesus Christ. The people bowed to peer pressure on both occasions.

They're swept up with the crowd, crying, Hosanna, Hosanna. And the next minute they're swept up with the crowd crying, crucify him, crucify him, crucify him. As Christians, if we're true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we are either on one side or the other. On a Sunday, we can't cry out, Hosanna, Hosanna. And then on a Monday, cry, crucify him, crucify him, crucify him.

We don't want anything to do with him. If the Lord Jesus Christ is our saviour, he has saved us from the wrath to come. We belong to him. We are called to follow him. And we cry, Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna, all of the days of our life. And we cannot bow to peer pressure.

If we go to work, for instance, and there are people there and they're doing things which we know are not right, and we deny the Lord Jesus Christ, and we are swept along with the crowd, we deny him. Have we not hopped from the narrow way that leads to life and we've gone back onto the broad road that leads to destruction? Are we not aligning ourselves with these Jews who didn't know where they stood? They wanted a king, but they didn't really want a king that would save them from their sins. They just wanted a king that would deliver them out of their problems.

Is that why you want the Lord Jesus Christ today? Do you just want him to get you out of trouble? Maybe just to get you out of hell. You don't really want to follow him and dedicate your life to him. You just want to get out of jail cart. Get out of hell cart. One minute you're crying Hosanna, the next minute you're crying crucify him.

You don't really know where you stand. Bowing to peer pressure. But Jesus knew. Jesus knows where you stand. It's a warning to us. We cannot just sit on the fence in this matter. Some matters, maybe you can sit on the fence, it doesn't really matter, but this has eternal consequences. You see, if you sit on the fence, then you're still the wrong side of the fence. You're outside of Jesus Christ. And the eternal consequences are hell, as we have seen recently. one side or the other, the broad road or the narrow way, the Hosanna or crucify him. We don't want anything to do with him, get him out of my life. But no matter what you say, it won't make any difference as to who he is. As it was written, this is Jesus. the king of the Jews. And this same Jesus, who the apostles saw ascend up into heaven, this same Jesus is going to come again.

Not on a donkey, not to bring salvation, but to gather his people to himself. He would come on a white horse. Revelation 19, and I saw heaven opened and behold a white horse and he that sat upon him was called faithful and true and in righteousness he does judge and make war.

His eyes were as a flame of fire and his head, on his head were many crowns and he had many names written that no man knew but he himself and he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood and his name is called the Word of God. Who is this? It's Jesus. He's the Word. in the beginning was the Word and the Word was made flesh.

This same Jesus that ascended up into heaven is this same Jesus that is seated upon the white horse, pure, powerful, true and faithful and righteous. Just as we saw in the prophecy, he is just, that his kingdom is perfectly balanced. and he's going to come again, his garments dipped in blood by the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world, the crucified Saviour, the grave could not hold him. He rose again upon the third day, this same Jesus, the King of Kings, Alpha and Omega. He came unto his own and his own received him not. What happened to them? Everything was destroyed. As many as receive him, he gives power to become the sons of God.

This same Jesus. As we saw 500 years before Jesus rode into Jerusalem, The prophecy was prophesied and it took place. Jesus has said that he is coming again, although we do not know the time or the season. But what we do know is that this world will get worse and worse and worse until Jesus comes again. May these words challenge us that 500 years the prophecy was fulfilled, therefore the word of God is true.

So Jesus says I'm coming again to gather my people to myself and I'm not coming on a donkey, I'm coming on a horse, I'm coming with eyes of flaming fire of judgment and the scripture says he will divide us No sitting on the fence, either a sheep or your goat, the left hand or the right hand. You can't today cry out Hosanna, then tomorrow crucify him, crucify him. And then when Jesus Christ comes, where are you going to stand? Where will you be? You'll be on the crucify him, crucify him. Depart from me for I never knew you, you workers of iniquity. This people draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are so far from me.

May the Lord bless us in these solemn things and help us to truly know what it is to cry out Hosanna. Save us. Amen. Let's sing our final hymn this morning. Number 593. 593. Jesus is a mighty saviour. Helpless souls have here a friend. He has borne their misbehaviour and his mercy knows no end. O you helpless, come and on his grace depend.

Hymn 593, tune 679. ♪ Jesus is the mighty Savior ♪ ♪ How blessed souls have heard they find ♪ ♪ He has borne their misdeed for them ♪ ♪ And His mercy knows no end ♪ ♪ Though He helpless, though He helpless ♪ ♪ Thou, Lord, on His grace depends ♪ ♪ We, too, sing Your praise ♪ ♪ Shelt'ring spot upon the tree. ♪ ♪ The unity is found to him, ♪ ♪ His ambitions full and clear. ♪ ♪ Highest, highest, highest, highest, highest ♪ O page, O grace, the uncasted fruit of the vine. If in prison he had set free, and a full release were giv'n, He is mighty, he is mighty, and to save the host he giveth.

♪ And the very first of sinners ♪ ♪ Who upon this critical morning ♪ ♪ Shall at last be saved. ♪ ♪ And shall sing beyond the sky ♪ ♪ Songs of praises, songs of praises ♪ ♪ To the land that once stood ♪ Now may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God the Father, with the fellowship and communion of the Holy Spirit, to be with us each now and for evermore. Amen.

Yielding to peer pressure.

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about Jesus's entry into Jerusalem?

How do we know the prophecy of Jesus's kingship is true?

Why is Jesus's humility important for Christians?

Sermon Transcript

About James Gudgeon

Comments

Joshua

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Music

Recent Comments

About

Legal

Subscribe

Account

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Recent Comments

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Collections

Music

About

Legal

Subscribe

Yielding to peer pressure.

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about Jesus's entry into Jerusalem?

How do we know the prophecy of Jesus's kingship is true?

Why is Jesus's humility important for Christians?

Sermon Transcript

About James Gudgeon

Comments

More from James Gudgeon

Related Sermons

Same Scripture

Suggested for You

Joshua

Where this book stands in the tradition

Plato

Augustine

The Western Christian Tradition

This Book