Jesus Our King | What's In a Name

So we continue now as we move kind of from the

season of Lent into Holy Week. Like I've said,

Palm Sunday today. Behold your King. Now I mentioned

kind of twice now at the beginning of service

and in the prayer that... Palm Sunday is a little

strange, or a lot of strange, depending on how

you want to look at it, because there's a great

paradox in Palm Sunday. What is a paradox? It's

a vivid understanding of confusion, that there's

something going on that shouldn't be happening,

or shouldn't be happening that way. That the

crowds that shout Hosanna cry for salvation.

But they do so with an intent or a vision for

something very different than what Jesus actually

does. As we understand what those cries in the

messianic context of the King David, they were

wanting a king. They're wanting power. They're

wanting authority. I look at the landscape of

2025 and power and authority look very, very

different. It seems like every day of the week.

That we look at power and we look at authority

and we have people in a power and authority that

are doing things or saying things throughout

the world that some of us look at and go, absolutely,

amen. And other of us look and they gnash their

teeth and they hiss because they are in total

disagreement. That this power ultimately and

authority, if you're going to look at it in any

kind of worldly sort of way, makes really no

sense or it really becomes incompatible with

the scriptures. And Jesus is showing that with

one simple vision here on Palm Sunday. Because

what the people are crying out for is a military

or a militaristic Messiah. Yet Jesus enters not

on a war horse, but a donkey. A foal of a donkey.

One that has never, ever been ridden. And no

one, again, I'm not a soldier, and I know the

army over the last hundred years looks very different

than prior to that. In some ways, I could say

people want him to roll in on like a tank, but

I can't really do that because that's just weird.

But if we're going to go back historically, right,

your major leaders, your captains, all the higher

ranking officials, they all came on these powerful

horses. I don't know too many during the Civil

War said let's ride out in a group of donkeys

and try to conquer this whatever. And we hear

no word of the sword. Though Jesus says multiple

times in the scriptures he could send legions

of angels and just completely wipe everybody

out like Sodom and Gomorrah. But he brings no

sword but brings humility. So let us consider

as we dive in today, Jesus as king, but not like

Caesar or Herod or even King David, but a king

who rules. through a cross. We're going to be

in John chapter 12. We're going to start from

John 12 · chapter mention

verse 12 to 15. We're going to break it down.

First, the king fulfilled. There's a fulfillment

going on in what Jesus is doing, and we're going

to break that down today. So we'll be in John

12, starting with verse 12. We read out of the

ESV here, but if you brought your own Bible,

have your own app, and you're in a different

translation, totally fine. But we're in the ESV.

The next day, John 12, in verse 12, starts. crowd

that had come to the feast, talking about Passover

in Jerusalem, heard that Jesus was coming to

Jerusalem. So they took off branches of palm

trees and went out to meet him, crying, Hosanna,

blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord,

even the king of Israel. And Jesus found a young

donkey and sat on it, just as it was written,

Fear not, daughter of Zion, behold, your king

is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt. So right

there, John is reciting something. He's reciting

one of the minor prophets, Zechariah 9 .9. The

beautiful thing about the minor prophets and

the major prophets, and just really quick, does

anyone know what makes the minor prophets minor

and major prophets major? For lunch and a conversation

with Pastor Jim? The length of it, absolutely,

is not deep theological insight. So you'll be

a value meal, Nikki, because it's not all that

deep. But understand that... It's just length

of book. Minor prophets are minor. Major prophets

are major. If we do the entire book of Isaiah,

it would take probably two years. We're going

to do the entire book of Zephaniah. No, I didn't

say that wrong. I didn't make it up. It's a book

in the Bible. We're going to do that the week

after Easter. It's going to take four weeks.

Totally aside. But understand, Zechariah 9 .9,

a minor prophet is giving a messianic prophecy.

Fear not. Daughter of Zion, us. The Israelites,

Jerusalem, behold, your king is coming, sitting

on a donkey's colt. This is a messianic prophecy

pointing to the righteous and humble king who

will bring blood and all of the control and conquering.

No, he'll bring peace, not war. The donkey symbolizing

humility, peace, and the fulfillment of covenant

hope, not covenant conquest. Understand, there's

the paradox. Understand that that is something

we, whether we like to admit it or not, we kind

of wish we had. Man, it would be much easier

if Christianity was just the lay of the land

and everybody acted that way. And yes, if everybody

acted Christian, truly Christ -like, unfortunately

I have to say it that way, if we actually walked

out how Jesus walked it out, life would be a

lot easier, right? But there's expectations.

Like I said, not too many of us look at Palm

Sunday and go, wow, what a great disappointment.

We go, no, yeah, we're going to take the branches,

we're going to lay down all of it, we're going

to cheer. But there's disappointment. There's

a expectation, kind of unverbal, if you will,

even though they did verbalize it in David messianic

language, that is completely disappointing. Now.

Expectations are interesting. One of the things

that I talk about in premarital with couples

is the idea of communicating verbal expectations.

And part of that is because anyone here that's

ever been in any kind of serious relationship,

right, or engagement or marriage or what have

you, or even in your families, right, if you

have an expectation that you don't verbalize

and then that never comes to be and then you

get mad and disappointed, whose fault is that?

Oh, Wes, not the other person. We'll pray for

you and Cheryl. But understand that... No, it

is you. That expectations, if you have those,

they need to be communicated, right? Carrie does

not read my mind. And for those that are maybe

new or visitors, Carrie is my wife, and she puts

up with me. And, you know, I have to verbalize

expectations. We're going to be married 17 years

in May. We still don't try to read each other's

minds. Partly because we don't want to. That

we hold the expectation of each other that we

will verbalize expectations even if we don't

like what it is. You're still committed to come

back together. You're still committed to talk

it out. But we see this in relationships. We

see this with the depth of relationship takes

work. If you've ever been in my office, there's

a teeter -totter on my desk. And I use that as

a great... representation of healthy relationships

because they're rocky. They're going to go back

and forth. Some days are going to be really high.

Some days are going to be really low. Or, and

I just knock it over, some days relationships

feel like that. There's no rhyme or reason, but

preparing a couple for marriage is a preparation

that come hell or high water. I'm going to get

back on. And I trust my partner is going to come

back on, my spouse, and we're going to do this

together. Now look at that in relationship with

Jesus. Look at that as our relationship with

God. Look at it as Israel's relationship with

God. God was absent. Things went quiet for 400

years. From that last prophecy to John the Baptist,

there's years that go by. Where the Messianic

conversation is just all in hope. Just kind of

all in lineage, verbally, kind of passing it

all down. We're way past Egypt. We're way past

the parting of the Red Sea. And Moses and Joshua,

Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, all of those things. We're

way past that. Yet the idea, the expectation

of Messiah or Mashiach is still there. That's

what makes Palm Sunday so breathtaking, so life

-changing, is because Jesus is now stepping into

it. He did that with miracles, signs, and wonders,

and those are all put in the scriptures, all

those messianic prophecies. Over 500 of the who,

what, when, where, why, and how of the Messiah.

He fulfills every one of them. And now he's stepping

into the scene. He's now taking his place. So

one of the things we have to understand is that

Jesus has redemption on the brain. This is Jesus'

heart. Jesus' drive this week is your and my

redemption. Because there's still a job to be

had. There's still a job that Jesus is going

to do. He's preparing. He's walking through.

And whether the Israelites knew it or not or

all the people in Jerusalem, probably 90 % Jews,

he was preparing them as well. The Belgian Confession,

Article 27, reminds us and kind of affirms this

when it says this holy church is preserved by

God against, I believe it's up there, preserved

by God against the rage of the whole world. That

Jesus, the king of the church, enters Jerusalem

to preserve and redeem his people. Fulfilling

God's covenantal promise to reign through his

anointed son. Understand, he's going to go against

the rage of the whole world. Let me ask. When

your significant other is in a mood. I'm just

going to put it that way. Okay? In a mood and

not the fun moods. Okay? Let's just go there.

Right? We're going to stop. We're stopping. Right?

There's probably maybe some built -up rage there.

At least I know it's been for me. Amen? Good.

You didn't say anything. You didn't agree. But

understand that he understands what's going to

happen. Did you ever just stop and think about

that? That as he's on the donkey. And he's seeing

all of these people. He knows what Thursday is

going to be. And we're going to talk about that

on Thursday. He knows what Friday is going to

be. We're going to talk about that online. He

knows that the end of this kind of the school

week, the Monday through Friday, by Friday, he's

going to be dead. Doesn't that make Palm Sunday

not just some regular Sunday? That there is an

expectation that he has. And that what the Belgic

is pulling out of us is that he knows he's going

to go against the rage. The mood of the people

will shift. Hosanna to the son of David. Hosanna

in the highest. Give us Barabbas. They're going

to get an option. And they're going to pick the

wrong one. So you see, this mood changes. That

the king is fulfilling what the king is going

to fulfill, but the king is also going to be

very misunderstood. So let's continue on in verse

16 of John chapter 12. His disciples did not

John 12 · chapter mention

understand these things at first. But when Jesus

was glorified, then they remembered that these

things had been written about him and had been

done to him. The crowd that had been with him

when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised

him from the dead continued to bear witness.

The only reason why the crowd went to meet him

was that they heard he had done this sign. So

the Pharisees said to one another, you see that

you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has

gone after him. So there's a misunderstanding.

I love that John puts in there the crowd that

was at probably his greatest miracle outside

of himself rising from the dead, but we'll get

there. Was Lazarus dead four days? Completely

dead by Jewish culture and understanding. He

calls him out. He has Mary, Martha visibly shaken,

mad, to the point where Jesus weeps. We talked

about that a couple weeks ago. This same crowd

now has gone out, and the gossip mill has now,

about this, has gone all over. Because let's

face it, that's juicy gossip, isn't it? I mean,

you had like, okay, he fed 5 ,000 men, so that

would have been probably about close to 9 ,000

to 10 ,000 people, if not more, with five loaves

and two fish. That's old hat. He raised a guy

from the dead. Okay, he spit on the ground and

he made a blind guy see. That's old hat. He's

raised Lazarus from the dead. He said that he

is the son of God. He has said he is the son

of man. For some reason, he's passed by two stonings

and was never killed. That's old hat. He raised

Lazarus from the dead. I don't know about you.

I think he would have had me there. I can be

a skeptic. I think I've been like, okay, okay,

these are cool. These are great. I should listen

to what he says. But then he raises Lazarus from

the dead. Nobody else has done anything like

this, and no one else has done it consistently

like he has. Yet they still don't get it. And

if we're being honest, I don't know if we always

get it either. You see, Jesus is praised, but

misunderstood. The crowd desires a political

liberator, but what they get is a suffering servant.

They misunderstand. How do we know they misunderstand?

Because they pull these off the trees or the

bush or whatever, however these grow. They pull

them off. And they're using this for a reason.

Right? It wasn't just cute to watch kids try

to hit each other as they go around or all of

that or try to not hit each other as the three

kids that are probably grounded now for doing

that when they get home. They did it because

it was a nationalistic symbol. It was used during

the Maccabean Revolt. They're using this for

a reason. They're signifying. This signifies

Jewish freedom. They cry Hosanna. But with every

leaf comes with its own agenda. And isn't it

funny? I should have thought about this before.

This is going to take forever. But just remember.

None of these leaves on there can easily be turned

into a whip. And that's exactly what's going

to happen to the Son of Man mere days later.

They don't get that Jesus is anointed for a purpose,

and it doesn't fit their agenda. So let me rabbit

trail here really quick, and this is going to

probably stir up a bunch of you. I look out,

and I know we all have agendas. Some of us hold

them much stronger than others. But understand

that Christ's holiness and anointing has never

been, will never be there to fit your agenda

because he is the king and you are not. He is

the king and I am not. My agenda, day in, day

out, should fit his agenda. not the other way

around. Because if we hold it to where he needs

to come, you know, Jesus, come on up here and

be where I'm at. Oh, friendo, that is a bad place

to be. You are just like the ones that waste

the palm branches, that waste the cries of Hosanna.

Because the anointed messianic king It means

something different. Heidelberg Catechism, question

answer 31, helps us understand why is he called

Christ, meaning anointed. The answer, because

he has been ordained by God the Father and anointed

with the Holy Spirit to be our chief prophet,

teacher, and only high priest and eternal king.

Friend, you and I are not anointed the same way

Jesus was anointed. Our anointing Our gifting

comes after this week. Comes with the call of

the Holy Spirit. Wait for that. Let's get through

the summer. Let's get through our August sermon

series starting Labor Day weekend. We're going

to be all about the Holy Spirit as we dive into

the beginning of the book of Acts. Because the

Holy Spirit has a job to do. But for now, this

Palm Sunday, we recognize that Jesus' kingship

includes teaching truth, interceding for sinners,

and ruling eternity. He's not merely a figurehead.

He is saving, he is reigning, and he is eternal.

So let's just really, let's shoot each other

straight. Let's just be honest. It would have

been a lot better if he would have come and just

conquered, right? It would have been a lot better

if he would have brought his angel legions and

just annihilated it and started everything over.

That wasn't his time yet. How do we know? Because

we journeyed through the book of Revelation last

fall. It's hard to think that was half a year

ago already. More than that. He comes first as

a baby king. He comes through on the foal of

a donkey on Palm Sunday. He will be seen by many

when he rises from the dead after Easter Sunday.

Oh, but friend, he comes back. He comes back

with fire in his eyes. He comes back in the way

a king would. But for now, he's conquering a

different way. He is the king who conquers through

the cross. So we continue in John 12, verse 23

John 12:23

and 25. And Jesus answered them, the hour has

come that the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly,

truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat

falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone.

But if it dies, it bears much fruit. Whoever

loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his

life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

Jesus responds to the growing momentum not by

seizing power, because he totally could have,

right? He had legions of people ready to go.

I'm sure if he would have turned, a lot of bad

things could have happened. A lot of lives could

have been lost. That mass of people was kind

of like an army, wasn't it? It probably looked

a little bit like an army. They're calling for

their general. But that was never Jesus. That

wasn't what he was going to do. That was never

on his mind. And he shows it. Full of a donkey,

not a war horse. We see palm branches, not swords.

And here's the thing. We don't see him going

through that main hallway, that main road in

Jerusalem and getting on some kind of stage.

No, he's going to continue to teach. He's going

to continue to preach. He's going to continue

to heal. He's going to continue to do signs and

wonders until the greatest one, the greatest

sign ever given in the history of the world that

thousands have given their life for happens this

time next week. When we hear that question, who

are you seeking in the empty tomb? The angel

exclaiming, he is not here. He is risen just

as he said. I don't know about you, but that's

the greatest sign and seal of our lives. The

Kansas door helps us understand this. The Kansas

door, one of our three forms of unity, the second

point, article three, or the second head, article

three, this death, Christ's death and resurrection

is of infinite worth and value. abundantly sufficient

to expiate the sins of the whole world. I was

going through candidacy in the Christian Reformed

Church. I did not grow up in the CRC. I didn't

go to Calvin Seminary to get my MDiv. But to

come into the denomination, you have to go through

a time of learning, a time of testing, a time

of proving, so to speak, that you could be a

candidate in the CRC. And I had a preaching professor.

That was going through my sermons. And they were

evaluating the three that I had to give. And

her and I disagreed on a lot. But she said, you

know, Jim, I think your sermons lack creativity.

Okay? Fair. And again, you receive it. You don't

come at it like, no, I'm Billy Graham and you

can't teach me anything. That's a really bad

way to live life. So if you're doing that, please

stop. People can't teach you things. She said,

you end with the cross all the time. I'm going

to lovingly challenge you to not end all of your

sermons on the cross, or at the cross, but maybe

go to the manger, or maybe go to the hill where

he feeds, or a boat where he tells the waters

to be quiet, or go to the empty tomb. You don't

always have to end to the cross. I remember I

wrote a response, and I shared it with my good

friend Joel Shears, who was the lead, and he

took it and he threw it away, and he said, start

again. And I said, maybe I'm a little upset.

And he was able to read it. And so I lovingly

pushed back and I just said, sister, I appreciate

your observation. I said, but without the cross,

the empty tomb is just a grave. The manger is

just a feeding trough. The boat is just a boat.

The cross changes everything. Now, selfishly,

what is she going to say? Is she really going

to come back and be like, you failed? No, because

I would have appealed it and probably would have

won. But understand, friends, that's the sermon.

The cross changes everything. And as you see,

that purple, that recognition of the divine,

of the Davidic, of the Messiah, turns to white.

That is because the job has been done. Our sins

no longer define us. Our sins no longer weigh

us down. That we are lifted up because the king

did his work. And it's sufficient. And this hurts.

It's sufficient whether you like it or not. It's

sufficient whether it meets my temporal needs

or not. It's sufficient whether it makes me happy

or not. We're going to look at Maundy Thursday

very differently this year. We're going to use

a word that you would not associate with Maundy

Thursday. And that word is, come Thursday and

find out. The king's victory is atonement, not

annihilation. His crown is of thorns, never gold

in this life. His throne is a cross, not a seat

in Jerusalem's palace. Because he's the king

we need, not always the king we want. And friend,

that, that's an us problem. That's never been

a his problem. So what do we do with this? Where

do we take this? Well, the first is we need to

know the true king. We need to recognize that

Jesus' kingship is not political, it's not manipulative

or earthly. It is spiritual, it is sacrificial.

And it is eternal. Amen? Okay. So how do we reflect

on that? Reflect this week. And I'm going to

have Dawn put these in the email for this week

for us to reflect on. Do I truly understand the

nature of Christ's rule in my life? Or am I trying

to make Jesus serve my kingdom? For the heart,

love the humble king. Jesus didn't come to conquer

us, but to die for us. Let that humility break

our pride and stir our affections for him and

for the lost. And reflect, am I in awe of the

king of glory entered Jerusalem for me? Am I

in awe of that? Or is it just ho -hum because

you've been in church all your life? If Holy

Week has become ho -hum for you, I rebuke that.

Because I think that's terrible. How could this

week a gift wrap for you and for me just be ho

-hum? Am I in awe that the king of glory entered

Jerusalem for you and for me? And then finally,

how do we take this out? Serve the reigning king.

We serve a risen king who is building his kingdom

through his church. And we are his ambassadors.

Reflect on this with me. How can I reflect his

kingdom values in how I serve, how I forgive,

and how I witness this week? So friends, behold

your king. On Palm Sunday, today, we wave branches,

we sing Hosanna, but we must also bow our knees.

Jesus enters to save, not conform. He goes to

the cross, not because he is weak, but because

he is kingly. So as we walk into this holy week,

our next movement, friends, is to the upper room.

Where our king not only serves, but offers something

profound in the midst of our sorrow. This Maundy's

Thursday, may we consider how Jesus is preparing

his disciples and us for grief. Not by removing

it, but anchoring it in him and what he gives

you. Join us Thursday to meet this suffering

king who will give us something the world can

never take from us. Let's pray.