More Than a Story
Luke 19:28 – 40; Luke 23:13 – 24, 33
Introduction
The Bible does not begin, “Once upon a time…”
Every event, every name, every word has been chosen by the Spirit and is of importance.
Some would like to declare it a ‘fairy tale,’ and storybook. Often even believers tend to treat it as that. They complain because it has difficult passages, they complain because the English is to old or not old enough, they complain it is too violate and in the same breath complain it is too boring. They want it to read like a novel and teach them like an instruction book and comfort them like a fair tale.
The Bible says this about itself:
Hebrews 4:12
12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
The accounts we have read this morning were not given to us so we could have Palm Sunday. They were not entrusted to us so we could have an Easter holiday. They were given to us so that we might have our hearts stirred – so that we might see who we are and who our Lord is.
The three events that we have read today – The entering of Jesus to holy city, the conviction of Christ by the angry mob, the crucifixion of our Lord – they are much more than just a story.
They are Declaration of God Sovereignty, an indictment on mankind’s sinfulness, and verdict on sin.
The historical account of Jesus riding into Jerusalem does not just appear so we could have some nice Sunday School lesson to teach the children. No! This account was God the Son Declaring His Sovereign rule – not just over Jerusalem, not just over Israel. Not just of the earth – But over all of Creation. Over the Universe -- everything visible and everything invisible.
Nothing takes place unless he permits it to take place! He is Sovereign. He answers to no one but everything answers to him.
Make no mistake they knew what Jesus was doing. He was claiming his Kingship.
There is an interesting statement Jesus makes that I would like to dwell a few minutes on – Verse 40.
This was going to be. There was nothing that Pharisees could do. There was nothing that the Pilate could do. There was nothing that soldiers could do. God’s Will was going to prevail.
Illustrate – Christ before Pilate -- John 19:10-11
10 Then Pilate said to Him, “Are
You not speaking to me? Do You not know that I have power to crucify You, and
power to release You?”11 Jesus answered, “You could
have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above.
Illustrate –
Joseph Brothers before him -- Genesis 50:19-20
19 Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God?20 “But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.[1]
The account of Jesus before Pilate was not included in the Bible just to fill in space. This single account brings into focus that hat we not wish to believe. It is the clear indictment of mankind’s sinfulness.
John 3:19
19 “And
this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved
darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.[2]
Three little notes need to pointed out here:
I might add that mankind does not want any god to rule over him. Mankind carries the same root sin that was found in Lucifer – Mankind wants to be his own God.
Illustrate Eve temptation in the garden.
Romans 1:21
21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.[3]
John 8:44
44 “You are
of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do.
He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the
truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from
his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.[4]
Let me let you be among the first to discover this great mystery that has plagued our world – Violence will never be cured until ‘fatherhood’ is corrected, and I am not talking about earthly fatherhood – but rather heavenly fatherhood.
III.
A Verdict on Sin
I’m not going to dwell on the subject for long but it is worthy – The Cross is God’s Judgment of sin.
The cross is where sin leads you.
It will do you absolutely no good unless you understand that person that hung on that cross.
[1]The Holy Bible, New King
James Version,
(Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson, Inc.) 1982.
[2]The Holy Bible, New King
James Version,
(Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson, Inc.) 1982.
[3]The Holy Bible, New King
James Version,
(Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson, Inc.) 1982.
[4]The Holy Bible, New King
James Version,
(Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson, Inc.) 1982.