Jesus, King of Contrasts: Lion and Lamb in Passion Week Mark 11: 1-26

You're listening to the Christ Our Cornerstone

podcast, a ministry of Christ Our Cornerstone

Church in O 'Neill, Nebraska. I'm Pastor Logan

Merrick, and it's our prayer that this message

strengthens your faith and draws you closer to

Christ. Let's dive in. Well, good morning. Good

to see you guys. Before we get going, make sure

to grab four or five of these. They're right.

by the door before you leave. I know you guys

like to skip out of here before you shake my

hand where I can remind you, but I'm reminding

you now to grab four or five of these to hand

to someone, whether they're your neighbors, whether

it's somebody that you buy coffee for this week

and bless in some way, which I'll be putting

those out this week as well with our emails,

our devotional. So make sure you're checking

your emails. Also have them on the social media.

So if you don't remember last week leading up

To Easter, we did what I, blessing someone at

Green Valley, we called it rack, which means

random acts of kindness. And so we're gonna be

doing random acts of kindness leading up to Easter.

And you should have at least one of these that

you're giving out each time. So with that being

said, today is Palm Sunday. And did I hear Carla

correctly that not necessarily the exact date?

but this would be how many years for you guys?

Three years in this building. That's something

to applaud by the way, because I don't know if

you guys realize, but church plants, that's what

you guys are. Church plants don't last past five

years typically, 90 % of them die, and does not

look like our church will be dying in five years,

hopefully not. Uh, but so that's something to

celebrate, whether you realize it or not, and

especially to have a building building that,

uh, doesn't cost much of, uh, except just upkeep.

And so all of these things are blessings that,

uh, we should be thanking the Lord for it. Cause

it's, it's a, it's a big deal. So we were been

walking through the book of Mark and because

it's Palm Sunday, we're going to look at the

triumphal entry. which would be where we get

Palm Sunday from through the book of Mark. Now

I want to remind you guys what Mark is about

and his theme. Remember he's writing to Romans,

the Roman church. And so his entire audience

is more geared towards kingship. So his entire

thing is about kings and showing that Jesus is

the King of Kings. So it's very fitting that

that's what we sang this morning. But what I

wanna look at, cause last year at this time,

I preached on what Palm Sunday meant. And this

year I want us to look at, because we're in the

book of Mark, I want us to look at the contrast

of Jesus and his kingship. And so in and of himself,

he holds a tension that we too should be holding

this tension. And so I wanna look at that. So

the title of my sermon is Jesus, King of Contrast.

lion and lamb in Passion Week. And we're gonna

look at each day of the Passion Week that we

are about to walk through. Now, real quick, Palm

Sunday technically is not on a Sunday. It would

have been on a Monday. Because if you do the

math, it doesn't add up if we do it on a Sunday

for him to be crucified on a Friday. Then we

get lost on what happens on Wednesday. Does that

make sense? So Palm Sunday technically is Palm

Monday. And that's where we're gonna look at

in just a minute. But, I want us to look at the

tension of what Revelation talks about in calling

Jesus, what do we, I just said it for my sermon,

we know him as the lion, right, and the lamb.

And I want us to look at those things, because

those two things, right now, It says that when

the new world comes and peace has come and Christ

is reigning, it says that the lion and the lamb

will lay down together, right? Right now they

lay down together, but it doesn't necessarily

look the same, does it? Right? We see two different

things. So when you think of a lion, I'm gonna

ask you this before we get started rolling. When

you think of a lion, how would you describe a

lion? as far as its personality, the way that

it looks, how would you describe it? Fierce,

what was it? Did they say vicious? Ferocious,

that's a good word. Aggressive, okay. Micah back

there, hold the thing. Dangerous, that's a good

word actually, very good word for it. Type A,

yeah. Powerful, that's a good one. So yeah, because

I was thinking strength, right? What do you call

a group of lions? A pride, right? They're proud

animals, right? Now let's contrast that with

a lamb. What do you think of with a lamb? Meek?

What else? Helpless? Yep, which we're called

sheep, right? What else? Stupid. They definitely

can be that. What else? What's that cuddly? Yeah,

um, I tried to cuddle a sheep before he got like

sheared wasn't as cuddly as I thought he would

be but Or she I don't know if it was a he or

she but Yeah followers, okay so We see just completely

different dynamics, right and yet the scriptures

call him the lion and the lamb So that's what

I want to talk about today in regards to passion

week So my big idea that we're going to drive

home this morning is true identity in Christ

means embracing our role as both meek servants

and righteous followers. It encourages us to

embody His character and proclaim His kingdom.

So if you've got your Bible's turn to Mark chapter

Mark 11 · chapter mention

11, if you do not have a Bible, we have some

back there. Those are yours to keep. If you do

not have one, that's our gift to you. This is

your first time here. My name is Logan, and I

get the great opportunity to shepherd this local

congregation, and I'm glad that you're here.

So here we go. Throughout history, we've seen

famous kings, right? And kings are typically

known by usually one defining quality, something

that marks them and something that made their

name endure. Now, right now, my wife is like

really, really into earlier kingships and queenships

and how different, what's the word I'm looking

for? Monarchs and stuff, how they, one came over

the other, how they married together, the houses,

yeah. So if you want an in -depth, what I would

call an autistic way of focused study. Get with

her right now because it's somehow in every conversation.

She brings it in but Yes, I'm clapping for you

I love you I'm appreciative of it but they one

thing that as we've talked about it like they

have different things and that they're marked

for Kings and Queens they're they're named different

things and so I thought about one as I was getting

the sermon ready, and that's Richard the Lionheart.

How do you think Richard the Lionheart got his

name? Everybody knows who Richard the Lionheart

is. There's movies made about him, right? Robin

Hood, he's in Robin Hood. He's in a lot of different

stories. He's in Kingdom of Heaven, the movie

Kingdom of Heaven. So Richard the Lionheart,

why was he called that? Everybody looks at Tracy

because they're like, tell us Tracy. What's that?

Yeah, he was definitely in charge. He was one

of the few kings who led in battle from the front

He didn't stay in the back. He led from the front

and So his name tells you everything you're supposed

to know strength ferocity Power in battle a king

who led from the front like I said and took what

was his There's another famous king that we all

know in this room His name is David, right? David,

the king of Israel, he was also known as the

warrior poet. A man who could stand before a

giant and sling within his hand, but also sit

with a harp and pour out songs of worship to

God. Even there, you start to see glimpses of

something deeper, strength, tenderness, existing

in the same person. But if we're honest, even

the best kings in history tend to lean in one

direction. They they are either known for their

strength or remembered for their compassion Rarely

are both in perfection together And that's where

Jesus stands completely alone because when you

come to scripture Especially when you begin to

see him in light of what we're gonna look at

later You're confronted with something that doesn't

fit in any category. We're used to he is the

lion and he is the lamb as I've said Not sometimes

one or not sometimes the other He's not shifting

depending on the moment. He is fully both at

the same exact time always. Jonathan Edwards

said this about him about Christ. He said an

admirable conjunction of diverse excellencies.

I would highly recommend just write this down.

If you're taking notes, you can download this

free. But Jonathan Edwards has a sermon called

The Excellencies of Christ, where it became a

book that he wrote off of this sermon. And that's

where I got a lot of what I'm using today because

it's really, really good. And there's one guy

who actually because Jonathan Edwards can be

hard to read. There's one guy that has a free

download that you can read it. That's more modernized,

but he keeps the theological themes the same.

And what Jonathan Edwards is saying is this that

in him, things that seem opposite to us are actually

perfectly united, infinite majesty and perfect

meekness. absolute authority and complete submission,

righteous judgment and also deep mercy. And that's

what we're going to see throughout Mark 11, because

this passage forces us to wrestle with the kind

of kingship that feels unconventional. Jesus

enters Jerusalem like a servant and then walks

into the temple like a sovereign. He receives

praise with humility and then exercises authority

with intensity. He is gentle and yet he is unyielding.

And here's why this matters for us this morning,

because we don't just observe His kingship, we

live under it. And if the King holds these things

together, our lives are meant to reflect the

same tension, not choosing between boldness or

humility, not drifting between softness and harshness,

but learning by His grace to walk in both. Let

me ask you this. How many of you guys have been

under good leaders that have been able to harness

both tenderness, and authority. Have you been

able to? Robin, are you saying I'm the person?

I'm just kidding. But I can think of really good

leaders that I have been under that tend to either

go really sharply, tender, compassionate, and

they get run over or they tend to roll with an

iron fist and they're great leaders. But they

are bad people people. You know what I mean?

They're not great with people, but they're great

at executing missions. And so it's hard to see

or even comprehend someone who has both of these

things. And that's Jesus. And that's well, we

are supposed to find our identity in that. So

because we follow. Because of the king that we

follow is not one dimensional, he is the lion

and he is the lamb. we now should look at, and

we're going to take this in chunks because it's

such a long chapter. I'm going to do it. We're

going to look at verses one through 10 first.

And so if you're taking notes, my first note

is the not so triumphant entry. And you're going

to see why right now. Now, when they drew near

to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany. At the

Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples

and said to them, Go into the village in front

of you and immediately as you enter, you will

find a colt tied on which no one has ever sat.

Untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you,

why are you doing these things? Say the Lord

has need of it and we'll send it back here immediately.

And they went away and found a colt tied at the

door outside the street and they untied it. And

some of those standing there said to them, What

are you doing? Untying the colt. And they told

him what Jesus had said, and they let them go.

And they brought the colt to Jesus, and they

threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. And

many spread their cloaks on the road, and others

spread leafy branches that they had cut from

the fields. And those who went before them and

those who followed were shouting, Hosanna, blessed

is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Blessed

is the coming kingdom of our father, David, Hosanna,

and the highest. I wanna pause for just a second.

Well, let me finish out verse 11. And he entered

Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when

he had looked around at everything and it was

already late, he went out to Bethany with the

12. I wanna pause for just a second. Let's go

back to verse 10. So we just had the kids wave

palm branches, right? the song was hosanna hosanna

right and and and i remember the song back in

the 90s uh blessed is he who comes in the name

of the lord hosanna hosanna hosanna you guys

remember that song right we never we never did

the part of verse 10 that they that they said

blessed is the coming kingdom of our father david

what does that tell you What does it tell you?

What's that? Okay. But what are they thinking

just in their praise? Yeah. Who said that? Great

job. Yes. They thought he would be a political

ruler, right? A king. And so that's why I'm calling

this the not so triumphant entry with my first

point. So when we come to this moment in Mark

11, We often call it the triumphal entry, which

is probably at the top of your sub -chapter title.

But if we're honest, there's something in that

title that doesn't quite fit, because when you

look at how kings were actually crowned throughout

history, this doesn't look like a coronation

at all. I want us to think about the kings like

Richard the Lionheart. Coronations were massive

events. You could even go and look at on television,

you can see when the King of England is coronated.

When the new king is coronated, you can see these

things. There are war horses, symbols of power

and conquest. There are going to be dignitaries,

important people gathered to witness it. There

will be regalia, crowns, robes, displays of wealth.

There was fanfare, announcements, celebrations,

declarations of authority. Everything about it

is intentional, official and unmistakable. Is

that what we're seeing here? Did you see those

things? Did you see war horses? Did you see Jesus

riding in on a war horse? No. You see him riding

in on a donkey. Did you see dignitaries present?

Were there other kings or other political leaders

besides? We're not gonna talk about the Pharisees.

We know why they're there. We don't see them.

Is the regalia, is Jesus wearing a robe, a royal

robe? Are there... It's the disciples going before

him with these big banners. Oh, is there fanfare?

Yes, but not with gigantic announcements. So

it's not a true coronation, it's not a true triumphal

entry. Jesus enters Jerusalem, not on a war horse,

but on a donkey. Like I said, there's no crown,

there's no throne, and there's no formal ceremony.

And the crowd, while loud, is not truly understanding

what they're participating in. This is not Jesus's

earthly coronation, and it's definitely not His

heavenly coronation. It's something entirely

different. Because despite its outward appearance,

this is not a true coronation. It is a false

coronation of the true King. Hear what I just

said. It is a false coronation of a true King.

What do I mean by that? It's not Jesus becoming

the earthly or heavenly King just yet. He is

the true King But they are trying to crown him

in a way that is not meant for what he came for

So everything about this is off It's humble when

it should be majestic. It's unexpected when it

should be carefully orchestrated It's spontaneous

when it should be official and ultimately it

proves to be superficial Because real coronations

don't unravel in a matter of days. Real coronations

don't end with the king being rejected, beaten

and executed within a matter of days. And yet

that's exactly where this is heading. The same

voice is shouting, Hosanna here in verse nine

and 10, will soon be shouting, crucify him before

the week is over. Why? Why? Why the sudden turn?

Yeah, Weston. Right. They wanted an earthly king.

So what happens? Why are all of a sudden they

going to turn on him days later? Because he doesn't

do the thing they're wanting him to do. Yeah,

I'm going to this isn't in my in my notes. Generous,

I apologize. I told my wife about these videos

that I came across. of a Orthodox Jewish priest.

And, you know, they're in their synagogues and

they are teaching just like normal, like we do,

but they're live streaming them. So that's how

I came across them. And it angered me and it

also hurt me because they refused to call Jesus.

They talk about Jesus a lot, by the way. They

were they hate Christians. They say we deserve

to die and that we will die when the true Messiah

comes. But they'll call him JC because they will

not call him Jesus Christ. And one of them said

that they were talking to a Christian just that

week and he said he looked at the Christian and

he said, don't you believe that Jesus died for

your sins? And the Christian said yes. And the

priest said, you're welcome. He goes, what do

you mean? You're welcome. You think your king

died for you? We did that for you. And then another

one said something that I find totally ironic,

but he said, Jesus was really who he's claimed

to be. He would have saved himself. He would

have gotten down from the cross, but he couldn't

because he was weak. That was his words. These

are words. We read what the Pharisees say in

the scriptures. You don't realize that they still

believe that today. And so when I read about

Jesus in this Passion Week and dying and seeing

these men who say, By the way that if you meet

a Christian do not befriend them spit upon them

and so when I see Jesus Saying while on the cross

being spat upon father Forgive them So when I

rise up in just so much anger the Lord goes what

are you getting upset about your sin is just

as nasty Pray for them And so when I read the

words, crucify Him, and having seen that, it's

still the same way today. It would not change.

Nothing would change about it unless the Holy

Spirit wipes the scales from their eyes. And

so this not so triumphal entry, this not a real

coronation, is not genuine faith. It's misplaced

expectation. They wanted a king who would overthrow

Rome. They wanted political freedom. They wanted

immediate relief from oppression. But when Jesus

made it clear, both in what he did and what he

didn't do, he was showing what kind of king he

is at this moment. And so they turned on him.

You can write this down if you're taking notes,

because a king who doesn't meet your expectations,

is easy to reject when you never truly understood

him to begin with. And this moment marks the

beginning of Passion Week. As I said, Passion

Week starts on Monday, not today as we typically,

truly, traditionally have it. And that matters

because, like I said, everything has to line

up just as it does in the Old Testament and just

as it does in the New Testament. And so in Passover,

the lamb was selected on the 10th day of the

first month. and then sacrifice on the 14th day.

And here is Jesus entering Jerusalem at the beginning

of that same timeline. I told you guys last year,

if you don't remember, it is meant that Jesus

comes in at this time, because just as they are

bringing in the Passover lambs, the lambs that

will be crucified, so is the true Passover lamb

coming into Jerusalem. Not as a political king,

but as a true Passover lamb. He is stepping into

place and he is presenting himself not to take

a throne, but to go to a cross. And this is where

we begin to see the beauty of who he is, because

even here, in what looks like a coronation, he's

already moving towards sacrifice. He is the king,

yes, but he is also the lamb. Write this down.

The crowd sees a king they want, but God is revealing

the king they need. Read that again. And the

tension is already building because the king,

this king will not be shaped by their expectations

and he will not be shaped by my or your expectations

either, but he has come to fulfill the mission,

his father's mission. And he even leads him straight

to death. Point number two, the not so fruitful

tree. So let's go ahead and read from verses

12 through 14. On the following day, when they

came to Bethany, he was hungry. And seeing in

the distance a fig tree and leaf, he went to

see if he could find anything on it. And when

he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for

it was not the season for figs. And he said to

it, may no one ever eat fruit from you again.

And his disciples heard it. So. We move on to

the next day. So he's come in on a Monday and

now he is, it's a Tuesday and he sees this tree.

He's probably been up for a while because what

do we know of Jesus? But he gets up early before

anyone else and he spends time with the father.

So more than likely he's been up for some time

now and he's hungry. And so he sees this tree,

a fig tree. And Jesus is walking along and Mark

tells us something simple, but important. He's

hungry. Why do we need to know that he's hungry?

Why does that matter? Yes, it shows that he's

fully human. And he's walking. He sees this fig

tree in the distance. It has leaves on it, full

green, promising. And so it's naturally he goes

on to expect to find something to eat. But at

first glance, this can feel confusing because

Mark tells us something that it wasn't the season

for figs. So why would Jesus be upset? Because...

Here's what you got to know. Even though it's

not full season for figs yet, by the time they

have leaves on them, they should still have these

little nodules, whatever you want to call them,

that are early. They're unripe figs, but they

can still be eaten. They weren't the final product,

but they were edible, and travelers oftentimes

would eat them on long journeys. So when Jesus

sees this tree covered in leaves, it's giving

every indication that fruit should be there.

It looks right, it appears healthy, it promises

something, but when he gets closer, what does

he see? What does he see? No fruit. It's completely

barren, and in response, Jesus curses the tree.

And this moment shocks us a little because this

feels out of character for Jesus. He gets angry?

All of a sudden? Is he getting angry? Does he

need a Snickers bar, Pastor Logan? No. By the

way, you should write this down. I don't have

it up here, but this is the only destructive

miracle recorded in any of the gospels. Jesus

heals, he restores and he provides, but here

he also can destroy. And if we're not careful,

we might read this and think, if Jesus is frustrated,

is he just reacting out of hunger? But nope.

His anger is intentional. What do you think he's

upset about? Is he just responding to a tree?

No, we're going to see in just a minute. This

is symbolic of what he's about to endure. He's

unraveling something much deeper because this

tree is a picture. It had leaves, but no fruit.

It had appearance, but no substance. And it made

a promise it could not fulfill. And Jesus knows

exactly what is coming next. He knows he's about

to walk into a temple system that looks alive,

it looks active, it looks religious, but is completely

barren. There's no true worship, no real prayer,

and no genuine fruit. And so what he does to

the tree becomes a living illustration of what

he's about to confront in the temple. It's not

misplaced anger. This is righteous, righteous

anger and prophetic action. And you can almost

hear the echo of what he's already taught. Jesus

says earlier in the gospels, he says, you will

know them by their fruit. The disciples know

this. And so more than likely, they see him curse

this tree and they're gonna go back. They're

gonna say, why? Like, why did you do this? But

more than likely, this is kind of ringing true

of something he's already said. And so when it

comes to Israel, when it comes to the system

of worship centered in the temple, write this

down. There were leaves everywhere. There were

rituals. There were sacrifices. There was activity.

There was appearance. But underneath it all,

it was fruitless, rotten at the core. Brothers

and sisters, I'm going to ask you this. How many

churches in America and around the world are

rotten? They look really good from the outside.

They have all the things. They've got a great

worship team, and lights, and smoke, and it blasts

your face, and they've got good donuts. Not the

day old donuts. They go get those bad boys fresh.

They got pretty decent coffee. Not Scootie -A,

as my wife calls it, Scooters. But they got some

decent coffee. They've got a pastor who smiles

real nice. doesn't got chipped teeth in the front.

My son just noticed that I have a chipped tooth

that I've had since I was 12, and he just looked

at me the other day and he goes, you have a chipped

tooth. They've got pastors with great teeth,

right? Lots of people go to them, but they are

dead. Here's what I wanna ask you. We need to

really search our hearts here. and Christ our

cornerstone church and make sure that we aren't

a dead church, that we're just got some nice

leaves, but we just practice these rituals. It's

not real faith. We're not really living it out.

We're not really making a difference in our community

and the communities that surround. So. What Jesus

did was not random, it was a warning, because

just like that tree, judgment is coming. In fact,

this moment points forward to something even

bigger, the coming destruction of the temple

itself. What looks strong, what looks established,

what looks permanent will not stand if it is

empty before God. And this presses into us because

it's possible to look spiritually alive and still

be barren. To have leaves, the language, the

rhythm, the routine, but no real fruit. And Jesus

is not drawn in by appearance. He looks at what

is real. What does Samuel say about David? When

his father Jesse goes, are you sure? You want

that ruddy looking dude? What does he say? God

looks at the heart, right? Man looks at the outside

of the appearance. Because our King, looks at

what is real. Because the one who is both lion

and the lamb doesn't just receive empty pretense,

he confronts it and this is the work of the lion.

So the lamb has come in and now the lion has

begun to take over. Remember, this isn't Bruce

Banner, is it Bruce Banner? Hulk, right? He's

not like, One way and then all of a sudden he

turns into, he's always living within the tension.

So now let's go to verses 15 through 19. If you're

taking notes, it's the not so holy temple. And

they came to Jerusalem and he entered the temple

and began to drive out those who sold and those

who bought in the temple. And he overturned the

tables of the money changers. and the seats of

those who sold pigeons. And he would not allow

anyone to carry anything through the temple.

And he was teaching them and saying to them,

is it not written that my house shall be called

a house of prayer for all the nations? I want

you to highlight that or underline that in your

Bible, because that matters. But you have made

it a den of robbers. And the chief priests and

the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to

destroy him, for they feared him because of the

crowd was astonished at his teaching. And when

evening came, they went out of the city." So

I want you to imagine with me for a moment. I

want you to think about this. Have you ever seen

the pictures or the videos of the New York Stock

Exchange? Does it feel like a place you want

to hold worship? Why It's chaos there's people

yelling there's bells ringing there's all types

of things happening That's what's happening in

this moment That's that is literally what's taking

place in the temple There's yelling there's chaos

there's all this stuff it's loud it's intense

And so while we can find that this picture of

the New York Stock Exchange, it's a powerful

example of capitalism. It's a good thing. We

all here, I'm sure, have our retirements tied

up in the stock market. I'm not saying anything

against the stock market, but the stock market,

ultimately, if we really just got down to it,

it's not just about retirement. It ultimately

represents one thing. What do you think that

thing is? starts with a big G, and I don't mean

gangster. Greed. At the end of the day, there's

a lot of greed. Is capitalism a great system?

Absolutely. Is it also a flawed system? Yes,

because sinful people are in it. So now I want

you to take that image, and I want you to move

it into the temple. Here's God's house, because

what Jesus walks into... The Jewish historian

Josephus, he says this about Passover, okay?

This is just during his time, which he was during

the time of Jesus and then a little after. But

he says, Jerusalem would swell with pilgrims.

Thousands upon thousands of people flooded into

the city, bringing animals and buying sacrifices,

preparing for worship. Josephus goes on to give

a record that one Passover season, They had over

two hundred and fifty five thousand lambs were

bought sold and sacrificed in one Passover Would

you guys imagine if everybody came into O 'Neill

needing to buy some some cows and some bulls

and You guys were selling two hundred and fifty

five thousand in one day. That's a lot Am I wrong?

Feels like a lot So just imagine it for a moment

many of you have been in livestock auctions.

Can somebody explain to me what a livestock auction

is like? Is it is it is it is it clean? I'm I'm

looking at you guys just had one, so I saw I'm

looking at y 'all. Is it clean? OK, well, I've

only ever been the one in my life and it was

the dirtiest place I've ever been. So they can

be dirty, they can be loud, right? It's a lot

of animals, right? So now you've got pigeons,

you've got lambs, you've got all these sorts

of different things. You've got bulls, you've

got oxen. Now I want you to try to imagine worshiping

in the middle of the stagmire's bull auction.

Hey, could you keep it down miles with the microphone,

dude? I'm trying to talk to Jesus, right? The

noise, the chaos, the distractions, it's all

happening out in the marketplace and it's happening

in the temple courts. And here's what makes it

even more significant. This is taking place in

the court of Gentiles. The only place in the

temple where non -Jews were allowed to come and

seek God is right here in the midst of an auction.

So if a Gentile wanted to worship, if they wanted

to pray, if they wanted to draw near, this chaos

is what they encountered. not reverence, not

prayer, not worship, but noise, exploitation

and corruption. Because on top of that, they

weren't just being taken advantage of. This was

a system that was run under the authority of

the high priest Caiaphas and his father -in -law.

And this was built off the profit of worshipers.

John MacArthur said, this is literally the first

ever franchise model. They took this into other

temples. where they would charge exorbitant amount

up and over to Gentiles what these animals were

worth for sacrifice. And the money went to them.

So they had inflated prices, unfair exchanges,

people being used in the name of God. And Jesus

walks into this. He doesn't just go, it's all

right, normal every day. What does he do? Does

he do? Does he do what probably most of us would

do? Walking into something chaotic that we're

kind of used to this system. And though it bothers

us, we just kind of go with it because it's the

system. No, we just read it. What's he do? He

flips tables. It says he literally pulls a chair

out from a dude who's trying to sell some pigeons.

Like that is hilarious. He's like, no, see ya.

Right? In Matthew, it tells us he starts making

a whip. Kyaow! He turns into Indiana Jones. So

he declares, my house shall be called a house

of prayer for all nations and not a den of thieves.

So I don't want you, I don't want you to miss

what's happening here. Because in that day, many

believe that when the Messiah came, he would

cleanse the temple. Hear me. The Jews believe

he will cleanse the temple. So here Jesus is,

he's cleansing the temple. But what do you think

they think the Messiah is gonna cleanse the temple

of? Gentiles. That's not what Jesus does. He

actually does the opposite. He drives out the

corruption. He drives out the greed. He drives

out the false system that keeps, that is keeping

the nations from God. And he says, this place

was meant for them too. For all nations, for

all people, for anyone who would come and seek

the Lord, this is the lion on full display. Righteous

anger, holy authority, a king who sees injustice

and refuses to let it stand. This is not a king

who looks the other way while the powerful exploit

the weak. This is a king who confronts it, who

tears it down, and who exposes what is false.

Because he will not allow empty fruitless religion

to stand in the way of real worship. And I don't

want you to miss the heart behind it. This anger

is not detached. It is burning with compassion

because the very people he has shown grace and

mercy and forgiveness to are now the ones mistreating

the others and keeping them from God. What does

God tell the Israelites in the very beginning

when they start this covenant? Bless those who

bless you, curse those who don't. But I'm about

to, they even have another word. He's not gonna

stand for it. This is a king who will break the

back of fruitless religious systems, a king who

demands holiness in the worship of his people.

The lion and the lamb does not accept corrupt

worship. He confronts it, and here's the tension.

The lion shows his authority here, but he will

not make it his final display of power in the

temple. No, the final blow will come through

the Lamb. What do I mean by that? Through patience,

through meekness, and through sacrifice, it is

the Lamb who goes to the cross and puts an end

to that very system. Write this down. It will

be the Lamb who tears the veil, opening the way

for all to come to the Father, no longer needing

a system that feeds on others. That, brothers

and sisters, that's kingship. Last point, the

not -so -impossible faith. We've walked through

the not -so -triumphant entry, the not -so -fruitful

tree, and the not -so -holy temple, and now Jesus

gives us a promise, a way forward, a way to respond

to all we've seen in its faith. Let's read. We're

going to finish this out. As they passed by in

the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away

to its roots. And Peter remembered and said to

him, Rabbi, look, the fig tree that you cursed

has withered. And Jesus answered them, have faith

in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to

this mountain be taken up and thrown into the

sea and does not doubt in his heart, but believes

that what he says will come to pass and will

be done for him. Therefore, I tell you, whatever

you ask in prayer, believe that you have received

it and it will be yours. And whenever you stand

praying, forgive if you have anything against

anyone so that your father also who is in heaven

may forgive you of your trespasses. Now, before

we start going all like name it and claim it

and blab it and grab it. All right. Jesus is

not saying you can just go start telling mountains

to be tossed into the sea and you're just throwing

around. all the geography of our country. It's

not what he's talking about. You guys have heard

me say this before. When we pray, we pray the

will of God so that whenever you are in complete

communion with God and you understand his will,

you can literally pray in faith his will because

it will be done. When Jesus, when the disciples

said, Lord, teach us to pray, he says, you should

pray like this. Our father who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come. All right,

we'll be done. So let's don't get crazy with

that. But this is not just any faith that we're

talking about. It's not small, it's not timid,

and it's not surface level. It's faith that looks

impossible to us because let's be honest, the

king wasn't what they expected, the tree wasn't

what it appeared, and the temple wasn't what

it claimed. Everything we've seen points to a

world that's confusing, frustrating, and full

of appearances that fail. And yet faith in this

King is far more powerful than we can imagine.

Jesus says, have faith in God. Truly I tell you,

if anyone says to this mountain, go and throw

yourself into the sea and does not doubt, it

will be done for them. That's impossible faith.

A mountain does not move on its own. Yet the

authority of the King, our lion, makes it possible.

And notice the balance. It's not just the lion's

power at work here. Jesus also says, when you

stand praying, forgive. The lamb calls us to

dependence, humility, and mercy. True faith is

both. It's bold, it's courageous, it speaks mountains

into motion, and it's tender, it trusts God,

it forgives, and it submits. The king, write

this down, the king we follow, the lion and the

lamb makes the impossible possible because he

is both authority and meekness, power and dependence,

judgment and mercy. And when we live in that

tension, trusting him with bold faith while walking

in humble dependence, we become participants

in his kingdom here and now. Mountains are moved.

Fruit grows where barrenness once reigned. The

temple of our hearts becomes a place of genuine

worship. This is the kind of faith that transforms

everything because it trusts the true King, the

lion and the lamb to what only he can do. I'm

gonna close with this. You can go ahead and come

on up Robin. Thursday, Noah and I went and saw

the movie Project Hail Mary. If you guys get

a chance, you should go see it. It's really good.

It's probably the best movie I've seen in some

time. And there's a couple of reasons why. One,

it's good storytelling, good acting, all that

stuff. Good stuff all around. There's no cussing,

which blew my mind. There's no sexual innuendo.

There's nothing. Nothing like that. The only

reason why it's rated PG -13 is because you see

them drinking alcohol in one quick scene. and

there's a lot of tension in it. So here's what

it's about. The earth is on the brink of destruction

and the only hope rests on the shoulders of a

terrified middle school science teacher. He doesn't

want to go, so they say they've got 30 days because

the sun is dying and they've got to do something

within the next 30 days or it's going to be the

next 30 years that they have to live. But over

that time, famine will ultimately happen because

as the sun dies out, right? All these things.

And so they look at him and they're like, you

got to go. You're the only one that understands

the science. And the reason why I like the movie

so much is because I think Ryan Gosling's character

I identified so much with because he goes, I'll

pass. They're like, we're all going to die. And

he goes, yeah, but at least I get to die 30 years

later down the road. Like, I'm not an astronaut.

Is anybody going to sign up for that? I mean,

if you guys are probably braver than I am, but

if somebody said the rest of the world depends

on you, you're going to be it's a one way ticket.

You're going to die in space alone to save the

rest of us. I'm not signing up for it. And so

they call it Project Hail Mary, because that's

what it is. If you don't know football, it's

one last he, right? Hope to win. It's to save

everyone. And so through courage and ingenuity

and sacrifice, he becomes this unlikely hero.

And it's really a beautiful story of redemption.

But here's the truth. Even that story pales in

comparison to what Jesus did. This was never

a last minute Hail Mary plan. This has always

been the mission, the only mission fit for Jesus

to save mankind. When the fall happened, it didn't

catch the Trinity off guard. They already knew

it. This was already the plan from all eternity.

And Jesus didn't do it reluctantly. He didn't

stumble under fear. He carried it out with joy,

with courage, and with perfect wisdom and strength.

And so the lamb rode into Jerusalem on Passion

Week. The lion's righteous authority flashed

in his confrontation with the temple and the

lamb went to the cross. The lion rose from the

dead and when he comes again, every ounce of

that kingship, meekness and might, lion and lamb

will be on full display. It will be his rightful

coronation. So friends, here's what this means

for us. We follow a king who is supremely capable.

perfectly willing and entirely trustworthy. The

mountains in our lives, the barren places, the

chaos around us, they are no match for him. He

has authority, he has mercy, and he is coming

back to set all things right. So we can live

in that tension today, humble yet bold, dependent

yet confident, tender yet courageous, because

the king we follow is the lion and the lamb.

And we get to look forward with hope because

this coronation is coming and we will see it

in full glory. By your head.