THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY

Dan. 9:25; Luke 19:28-44

Prayer

Jesus was walking up the Mount of Olives.

He was accompanied by a large crowd.

The people were enthusiastic;

Praising God;

Shouting hosannas.

Jesus would soon make His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem.

But He wouldnít WALK into the city.

He would ride in on a donkey.

This would fulfill what the prophet Zechariah said four hundred years earlier.

ìRejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion;î

ìShout, O daughter of Jerusalem:î

ìBehold, thy King cometh unto thee:î

ìHe is just, and having salvation;î

ìLowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an assî

(Zech. 9:9).

Jesus sent two of His disciples to get a donkey.

He was ready to make a statement;

Ready to announce that He is the King of the Jews.

Most kings would ride in on a prancing white stallion, a horse of war.

But not this King.

This King was coming in peace.

He wasnít coming to conquer the city or the Romans.

He was coming to conquer sin.

And He wouldnít conquer sin with a sword.

He would conquer sin by His death on a cross.

He would die for your sin.

And mine.

All we need to do is admit that we are a sinner.

Believe all the things the Bible says about Jesus.

Confess our sins and that we believe what the Bible says about Jesus.

And we will be saved.

The two disciples got a donkey.

It was a special donkey;

A donkey that had never been ridden before.

An unbroken donkey would be expected to buck and jump.

But not this donkey.

This donkey behaved like he knew he was carrying the Saviour of the World.

The two disciples didnít have a saddle.

So they threw some of their clothes on the donkeyís back;

Lifted Jesus up, sat Him on their clothes;

And He started riding into the city.

The large crowd ran along side and in front of the donkey.

Many people spread their clothes on the ground for the donkey to walk upon.

Jesus topped the Mount of Olives and a great crowd came out to meet Him.

They were rejoicing and praising God;

Excited about the great miracles Jesus had done.

It hadnít been long since He raised Lazarus from the dead.

The people had heard about that great miracle.

Rumors had circulated that the Messiah and King was coming.

Why not?

Lazarus had been dead for four days.

Jesus stood before the grave and said, ìLazarus come forth.î

And Lazarus walked out of that grave in his grave clothes.

It was a great miracle.

Now, itís the Triumphal Entry.

The people shouted, ìBlessed be the King that cometh in the name of the     

Lord:î

ìPeace in heaven, and glory in the highest.î

The Psalmist had predicted the people would shout these words when their   

Messiah and King rode into Jerusalem (Psalm 118:26).

For the time being, it looked like they were accepting Jesus as their Messiah  

and King.

But the Pharisees said, ìMaster, rebuke thy disciplesî (Vs. 39).

He replied, ìI tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would

immediately cry out.î (Vs. 40).

Don't miss this.

Jesus often performed miracles and someone suggested that He was the       

Messiah.

He said, ìGo your way.î

ìDonít tell anyone.î

He used five loaves and two fishes.

He fed five thousand men,

And multitudes of women and children.

Some estimate that He may have fed as many as twenty thousand people.

They wanted to crown Him King.

He said, ìNo.î

He went away.

But on this day the crowd was saying, ìBlessed be the King that cometh in   

the name of the Lord.î

The Pharisees said, ìMaster, rebuke thy disciples.î

And He refused to rebuke them.

Why wouldnít He rebuke them?

I believe the answer goes back to the days of Daniel the prophet (Daniel 9).

The Jews were captives in Babylon.

Jerusalem and the Temple had been destroyed.

Daniel was praying;

Pleading with God to forgive the Jews;

To let them go home;

To let them rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple.

Suddenly, the angel Gabriel appeared.

Gabriel told Daniel that he had come to give him skill and understanding       

(Dan. 9:22).

He said a command will be issued for the Jews to go home to restore and to

rebuild Jerusalem (Dan. 9:25).

He said 483 years will pass after that command.

Then, the Messiah will appear.

483 years on the Jewish Calendar is 173,880 days (483 X 360).

We know when that command was given (Neh. 2:1-8).

And this was the 173,880th day.

In other words, Jesus was making His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem on

the exact day that the angel Gabriel said the Messiah would appear.

Jesus knew that heaven and earth will pass away before Godís Word fails

to be fulfilled.

So He refused to rebuke the crowd.

Then, a strange thing happened.

Luke said, ìAnd when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over  

itî (Vs. 41).

All the people were rejoicing;

Calling Jesus the Messiah;

Wanting to crown Him King.

But He was crying.

He looked down upon the city.

It was beautiful.

He looked upon the people.

He saw a great multitude.

Josephus said at least three million people lived in Jerusalem at this time.

They must have made a tumultuous sound;

Rejoicing;

Laying their clothes and Palm branches on the ground for Him to ride upon.

But Jesus was crying.

He understood the situation.

He understood that they didnít have an inkling about what was happening;

That the angel Gabriel had also predicted that the Messiah would be killed;

That he had also predicted that Jerusalem and the Temple would be destroyed        

again.

Jesus could hear the people shouting praises.

But He knew it wouldnít be long until they would be shouting, ìCrucify Him!         

Crucify Him!î

And shortly after that, Jerusalem and the Temple would be destroyed.

So Jesus was crying.

He looked at Jerusalem and said, ìIf thou hadst known, even thou, at least in

this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace!î

ìBut now they are hid from thine eyesî (Verse 42).

Notice, the phrase ìin this thy day.î

This was the 173,880th day;

The exact day Gabriel said the Messiah would appear.

Thatís why Jesus allowed the crowd to proclaim Him King when He wouldnít        

allow it on any other day.

This was the day Gabrielís prophecy would be fulfilled.

But Jesus was crying.

He was saying, ìIf you only knew the Scriptures,î

ìIf you only would stick to your confession that Iím your King and Messiah,î

ìYour sins would be forgiven.î

ìAnd you would have peace.î

ìBut you don't know what day this is.î

ìYou don't know what it takes to have peace.î

Thatís something to cry about.

Religious people who donít know the Scriptures;

Religious people whoíve gone to Church all their life and they still donít       

know the Scriptures;

Religious people who donít know the Messiah;

Religious people whoíve been baptized and joined the Church before they got        

saved;

World leaders who donít know how to have world peace.

If we donít know the Scriptures, weíre in trouble.

Weíre going to be judged by the Scriptures.

God gave them so we can know His will;

Know Jesus;

Know how to live;

Know how to have world peace.

A friend of mine was talking about the Judgment when he held up his Bible    

and said, ìThese are the things thatís going to be on the test.î

ìDonít you think you ought to look at them?î

Jesus said, ìFor the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a        

trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side.î

He was prophesying;

Prophesying that the Romans would surround Jerusalem;

Attack on every side;

Trap the Jews inside the city;

ìAnd [your enemies] shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children     

within thee;î

ìAnd they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another;î

ìBecause thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.î

This prophecy is now history.

The Romans attacked Jerusalem in 70 A.D.;

Killed the Jews without mercy;

Slaughtered the women and children.

Thatís harsh.

But thereís grace in it.

The Jews couldíve believed Jesus and left before it happened.

In fact, Jesus allowed persecution to drive the Church out before it happened.

Sometimes things are going bad.

But God is allowing it because He is protecting us from worse things.

You say you have a problem today.

You donít understand it.

But down the road, you may realize that it was a blessing.

ìAll things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are   

the called according to his purposeî (Rom. 8:28).

And notice that not one stone would be left upon another.

The Romans set fire to the city;

Burned that beautiful gold adorned Temple.

The gold ran down between the stones.

The Romans pried the stones apart to get the gold.

This happened ìBECAUSE.î

ìBECAUSEî tells us why the Romans surrounded Jerusalem;

Why the city was leveled;

Why millions of men, women and children were killed.

ìBECAUSEî tells us why the Jews wouldnít have peace for the next two      

thousand years.

Jesus said these things would happen, ìbecause thou knewest not the time         

of thy visitationî (Verse 44).

Because you donít know the Scriptures.

Because you donít study Bible prophecy.

Because you donít know this is the day the angel Gabriel said your Messiah  

and King will appear.

Because you will crucify your Messiah and King.

There are those who say we shouldnít study Bible prophecy.

Those who say other things are more important.

Iím not saying other things arenít more important.

They are.

Getting saved is more important than knowing Bible prophecy.

Living for Christ is more important than knowing Bible prophecy.

But letís understand why Israel was destroyed.

Israel was destroyed because the Jews ignored Bible prophecy.

And they killed their Messiah.

They either didnít know it.

Or they brushed it aside.

Hereís an example.

When Jesus was born in Bethlehem, wise men traveled from a foreign          

country to ask King Herod, ìWhere is he that is born King of the          

Jewsî (Matt. 2:2)?

He summoned the religious leaders.

They said, ìIn Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet.î

They quoted the prophecy.

But they were treating it like it wasnít important.

I would think these religious leaders would be looking for the coming of the  

Messiah and King;

I would think that they would have gone to Bethlehem with the wise men to   

see Jesus.

But they didnít go.

I wonder how many people are really looking for the Second Coming of       

Jesus today?

How many are ignoring what the Scriptures say today?

Jesus once called the Pharisees and Sadducees a wicked and adulterous       

generation because they paid more attention to the signs of the weather          

than they paid to the signs of the times (Matt. 16:1-3).

He said, ìwatch.î

Donít say, ìmy lord delayeth his comingî (Matt. 24:48).

Donít start living carelessly.

Donít assume you have lots of time.

ìBoast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring          

forthî (Prov. 27:1).

We have a tendency to put things off;

To wait for a more convenient season.

But multitudes are in hell today because they waited too long.

Jesus said, ìif the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief  

would come,î

ìHe would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be         

broken upî (Matt. 24:42).

A good person will try to keep his loved ones from being left behind.

A good person will try to give his loved ones a warning about things to come.

Jesus said, ìWatch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted

worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand   

before the Son of manî (Luke 21:36).

The Tribulation Period is real.

It will be hell on earth.

But the only way to be accounted worthy to escape is to be saved;

To trust Jesus;

And to commit your life to Him.

Jesus said, ìLet your loins be girded about, and your lights burningî

(Luke  12:35).

Be ready to go on a moments notice.

Do all you can to let your light shine by witnessing for the Lord.

Paul said, ìwatch and be soberî (I Thess. 5:6).

Did he say ignore the signs?

No!

ìWatch the signs.î

ìAnd get your priorities straight.î

The day will come when how much we have in the bank wonít matter.

What kind of clothes we wear, what kind of house we live in, what kind of    

vehicle we drive wonít matter.

I donít want to mislead you.

But after watching the signs for thirty years, I feel a sense of urgency about   

people making things right with God.

This matter of terrorism is serious.

Itís time for us to walk honestly before the Lord.

Peter said, ìbe sober and watch unto prayerî (I Pet. 4:7).

Be an intelligent person.

Make wise decisions.

Seek Godís guidance.

Pray for yourself.

And pray for others.

Jesus said, ìNow learn a parable of the fig tree;î

ìWhen his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that

summer is nigh:î

ìSo likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even  

Ýat the doors.î

ìVerily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be   

fulfilledî (Matt. 24:32-34).

Israel is the Bible fig tree.

Jesus was saying, ìWatch Israel.î

ìIsrael is your indicator.î

ìIsrael is your point of reference.î

ìWhen the leaves on a fig tree start popping out you know that summer is     

near.î

ìAnd when you see all these prophecies about Israel being fulfilled you know         

that the end of the age and the Second Coming of Christ are near, even   

at the door.î

The Romans destroyed Israel in 70 A.D.

For almost nineteen hundred years, the Bible Fig Tree didnít exist.

For almost nineteen hundred years, many signs couldnít be fulfilled.

In 1948, Israel became a nation again.

The fig tree is tender;

Young compared to other nations.

The fig tree is putting forth leaves;

Sprouting and growing again.

The population is increasing.

Many prophecies couldnít be fulfilled for almost nineteen hundred years.

But now, everything is beginning to come to pass.

Many prophetic scholars believe the end of the age has arrived.

They say we may well be the terminal generation of the Church Age.

I want to ask you a question.

If God held the Jews of Jesusí day accountable for not recognizing the signs

of the times, shouldnít we expect Him to hold us accountable for not        

recognizing the signs of the times?

The Jews had dozens and dozens of prophecies about the first coming of     

Jesus.

They were even told what day He would appear.

They shouldíve known the day of their visitation.

But we have more prophecies about the Second Coming than they had about         

the first coming.

Shouldnít we be careful to avoid the mistake they made?

I heard about a woman who went into a jewelry store.

She wanted to buy a cross.

She told the clerk, ìI want one that doesnít have that little man on it.î

Thereís a lot of Bible ignorance in this country.

Itís time to think about the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus;

To think about The Passion of the Christ;

To think about our sins;

To draw close to Jesus.

Have you accepted Jesus as your Saviour?

Will you do it today?

Will you rededicate your life today?

Will you move your membership to this Church today?