Matthew 21:1-11
Pastor Nathan P. Kassulke“Look, Your King Comes to You”
Palm Sunday
Sunday, April 2, 2023
For better or for worse, today national politicians are celebrities. You know their names. You see their speeches. You can find clips and soundbites from their work on the news or on internet video sites. They are interviewed, and they are both adored by some and ridiculed by others. I got a glimpse of this celebrity not too long ago as I was standing at our congregation’s booth at the Tucson Festival of Books. A sizeable crowd slowly made its way past our location, and someone pointed out to me that at the center of that crowd was Senator Bernie Sanders. I heard his name repeated a few more times as people wanted to know where he would be speaking so that they could come and listen. He was a celebrity there.
Palm Sunday was a celebrity sort of event for Jesus. A huge crowd. Loud cheering and praises. Palm branches and coats. Jesus rode on a donkey as the crowd went ahead of him and followed behind. He was a celebrity.
That’s where the comparison between Jesus and today’s politicians really breaks down. Matthew’s Gospel makes it clear that Jesus is a king, but he is such a unique king and such a special king. Any king would be unique and special to us today. That’s not the system under which we have been governed. But we have seen time and time again that no matter how much we may like or dislike our elected officials, they all clearly fall short of the ideal standards, the things that we would most want from our leaders.
But that is not the case with Jesus our king. The Gospel writer Matthew, by God’s guidance connected the events of Palm Sunday with the prophecy we heard from Zechariah. And so today we join with the Palm Sunday crowd and capture a glimpse of the celebrity in the middle. God himself directs our attention to him by saying, “Look, your king comes to you.”
And see what an amazing king he is. Before he rides the donkey into Jerusalem, he needs to have the donkey. From the Mount of Olives Jesus sends two disciples to go and retrieve it for him. In fact, he sends them to find two donkeys, a colt and its mother. He gives these disciples instructions about what they are to say if anyone questions them. And they go and carry out his instructions.
Do you see already what an amazing king this is? Jesus gives his disciples instructions about exactly what they will find and what they are to do. He knows where his selected ride is to be found, this donkey, and he knows what words will solve any issues that present themselves. And everything goes exactly according to plan. I suppose there are many descriptive words we could use for this sort of king. He is wise. He is confident. He is trustworthy. All those words and more are suitable descriptions, but I guess the word that most readily suggests itself to me is “powerful.” He has the power to know what will happen. He has the power to see to it that every command and instruction he gives not only can be carried out but will be done as he desires.
This isn’t a president doing his best. This is no merely earthly leader. This is God himself, with all power. There is literally nothing that is too much for him to do or to accomplish. That is the one who rides into Jerusalem to appropriate shouts of joy.
And that’s not all. Not only is our king a powerful king, but he is also a humble king. That is obvious all over this account, just as it is obvious throughout Jesus’ life. In fact, the humble attitude of Jesus is a defining quality. Zechariah’s prophecy discussed it. He rides a lowly colt. But his humble attitude was apparent well before. True God, the Creator of the universe, yet he humbles himself to be born as a servant. He humbled himself by clothing his glory not just in flesh and blood, but in lowly flesh and blood. He was a celebrity on a handful of occasions such as the one we are considering, but he was frequently opposed, persecuted, and attacked for most of his ministry. Paul described his attitude this way, “he emptied himself by taking the nature of a servant. When he was born in human likeness, and his appearance was like that of any other man, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:7-8).
He was a humble king, the most humble of all even though he was also the most powerful of all. And this was the reason: he was coming as a focused king. He was riding into Jerusalem for a purpose. His very popularity and his celebrity status at that moment would serve his purpose. It would upset his enemies. They would continue their nefarious plots against his life. He was heading into Jerusalem with an intention and an object. And that object was his own execution. He was riding on, as our hymn described, to die. The crowds seem to have an incomplete understanding. They call him a prophet, the one from Nazareth. But they sang praises like these: Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!
These were words that reflected his purpose and his mission. These were words that described the Messiah, the Promised One, the Coming One. These were words that were filled with hope and joy. Some of the crowd likely hoped that Jesus would be just the sort of king that they expected, a king who would overthrow the Roman government and all its local control over the once proud and chosen people of God. But Jesus was not that sort of king. Jesus was Coming as a powerful king and as a humble king and as a focused king, focused on the mission of saving people from their sins. That’s what God had promised. God had promised it because that is just what we needed. Compare for a moment not how politicians stack up to our descriptions of Jesus, but how you do. Powerful? How well have you stood up to temptations, big and small? How often have done the right thing even though it was also the hard thing? What about humble? Have you served and loved others? Have you put their needs above your own? Have you sacrificed your own interests for someone else’s? And what about focused? What comes naturally is for us to focus on ourselves, on our needs and desires, on our pleasures. What comes naturally is to focus on this life and this world and all the things that we can see and touch but which pass away.
But look, your king comes to you. He is powerful as true and almighty God. He is humble for you and in your place. And what he is focused on is your salvation. He has stood up to and withstood every temptation. He has served and loved everyone but himself. That’s the perfect humility that he showed his entire life and ministry. And he rides into Jerusalem on a donkey, on a colt the foal of a donkey in order to fulfil every prophecy spoken about him on his way to the cross. His life has become yours, and your death has become his.
And now your king invites you to follow his example. He empowers you to do so. He has made you powerful to stand up against temptation through faith and by the power of his Word. He has made you humble so you can set aside your petty jealousies and truly serve and love others, even and especially those with whom you disagree. And with the same humility you recognize that you have earned or deserved nothing, but Jesus has given you everything as a precious gift. And he has made you focused, focused no longer on the things of this world that will surely pass away, but focused on Jesus your king and focused on the eternal joy of heaven he has prepared for you and promised to you. He has made you focused on sharing this good news with others. Modern politicians are celebrities to a degree, but at best their impact is limited to this life and this world. Jesus is a king unlike any other. He is not a politician. He is the Savior. We join the Palm Sunday crowds and add our voices to theirs for this moment of celebrity because his impact changes us for eternity. Look, your king comes to you. He is powerful; he is humble; he is focused. Hosanna. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
