04-10-2022 – “The Messiah Presents Himself to Israel”
Above is the
Video Sermon and
Audio Only recording
Links from Our Website:
Bulletin (pdf)
Sermon Notes (pdf)
April Calendar (pdf)
YouTube Video Sermons
Upcoming Events
FBCW Website Calendar
April 10, 2022
“The Messiah Presents Himself to Israel”
Matthew 21:1-17; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:29-46; John 12:12-19
Today we begin what is called Passion [Holy] Week, it is set off by our Lord entering Jerusalem on Sunday, while the people praise Him; but five days later, on Friday, the people will cry out for His death, after which, He will be crucified and laid in a tomb, but on Sunday morning, one week from when He entered Jerusalem, He will rise from the dead, just like He said He would!
There is much in Scripture about Jesus’ last week in Jerusalem (Matthew 21-28, Mark 11-18, Luke 19-24, John 12-20). Out of a total of 89 chapters that comprise all four Gospels, about 1/3 of them are devoted to this one-week period of Jesus’ life!
When I taught through Mark’s Gospel, I prepared 20 sermons on this one-week period of Jesus’ life; in Matthew’s Gospel, I prepared 22 sermons; and in John’s Gospel, I prepared 30 sermons on Passion week.
This week is highly charged and extremely important, because it contains God’s greatest expression of love for mankind, i.e., sending His own Son to die as payment for all our sins, then raising Him from the grave to provide eternal life.
Apart from Creation Week, when everything was made that has been made, the crucifixion and resurrection of God’s One and Only Son, are the most marvelous, majestic, and miraculous events that have ever happened.
There are many OT prophecies fulfilled by the Messiah during Passion Week, here are a few of those.
None of the bones of God’s Lamb were to be broken. (1400 B.C.)
Exodus 12:46…
46 It is to be eaten in a single house; you are not to bring forth any of the flesh outside of the house, nor are you to break any bone of it.
His hands and feet will be pierced. (1000 BC)
Psalm 22:16…
16 For dogs have surrounded me;
A band of evildoers has encompassed me;
They pierced my hands and my feet.
Lots will be cast for His garments.
Psalm 22:18…
18 They divide my garments among them,
And for my clothing they cast lots.
He will be given vinegar to drink.
Psalm 69:21…
21 They also gave me gall for my food
And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
He will be despised, forsaken, led like a lamb to the slaughter; He will be pierced for and put to death for our sins (700 BC)
Isaiah 53:1-12…
1 Who has believed our message?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
2 For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot,
And like a root out of parched ground;
He has no stately form or majesty
That we should look upon Him,
Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.
3 He was despised and forsaken of men,
A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
And like one from whom men hide their face
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
4 Surely our griefs He Himself bore,
And our sorrows He carried;
Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But He was pierced through for our transgressions,
He was crushed for our iniquities;
The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him,
And by His scourging we are healed.
6 All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all
To fall on Him.
7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet He did not open His mouth;
Like a lamb that is led to slaughter,
And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers,
So He did not open His mouth.
8 By oppression and judgment He was taken away;
And as for His generation, who considered
That He was cut off out of the land of the living
For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?
9 His grave was assigned with wicked men,
Yet He was with a rich man in His death,
Because He had done no violence,
Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.
10 But the LORD was pleased
To crush Him, putting Him to grief;
If He would render Himself as a guilt offering,
He will see His offspring,
He will prolong His days,
And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand.
11 As a result of the anguish of His soul,
He will see it and be satisfied;
By His knowledge the Righteous One,
My Servant, will justify the many,
As He will bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great,
And He will divide the booty with the strong;
Because He poured out Himself to death,
And was numbered with the transgressors;
Yet He Himself bore the sin of many,
And interceded for the transgressors.
He enters Jerusalem on a colt. (500 BC)
Zechariah 9:9…
9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you;
He is just and endowed with salvation,
Humble, and mounted on a donkey,
Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
He will be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver
[Exodus 21:32].
32 If the ox gores a male or female slave, the owner shall give his or her master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.
Zechariah 11:12…
12 I said to them, “If it is good in your sight, give me my wages; but if not, never mind!” So they weighed out thirty shekels of silver as my wages.
His friends will desert Him.
Zechariah 13:7…
7 “Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd,
And against the man, My Associate,”
Declares the LORD of hosts.
“Strike the Shepherd that the sheep may be scattered;
And I will turn My hand against the little ones.
He will rise from the dead.
Psalm 16:8-11…
8 I have set the LORD continually before me;
Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will dwell securely.
10 For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol;
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.
11 You will make known to me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.
He will ascend back into heaven.
Psalm 110:1…
1 The LORD says to my Lord:
“Sit at My right hand
Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”
Next Friday at 3 pm, we’ll study the events of the day of Christ’s crucifixion; and next Sunday, we’ll study what the Bible tells us about His resurrection.
Today, I will read mostly from Mark’s Gospel, the most succinct narrative among the four accounts; but I will also cite information from the other accounts, so as to provide a more complete picture of Passion week’s events.
Read Mark 11:1-3…
1 As they approached Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples,
2 and said to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, on which no one yet has ever sat; untie it and bring it here.
3 If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ you say, ‘The Lord has need of it’; and immediately he will send it back here.”
Jesus and the 12 approached Jerusalem, coming near Bethphage ["house of unripe figs"], a small town near Bethany (the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus
(cf. John 11:1)
1 Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.
on the SE side of the Mount of Olives.
The Mount of Olives is just across from the Temple Mount; it was there that Jesus taught about End Times Events (cf. Matthew 24). And it was here Jesus ascended back into heaven
(cf. Acts 1:9-12),
9 And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.
10 And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them.
11 They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.”
12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away.
and it is here that He will return to the earth
(cf. Zechariah 14:3-5).
3 Then the LORD will go forth and fight against those nations, as when He fights on a day of battle.
4 In that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley, so that half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south.
5 You will flee by the valley of My mountains, for the valley of the mountains will reach to Azel; yes, you will flee just as you fled before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD, my God, will come, and all the holy ones with Him!
Jesus sends two of His disciples into Bethphage to acquire a young donkey; telling them that if anyone asks why, tell them “The Lord has need of it,” evidently the people knew Jesus, for He had visited there several times; they also knew that He was referred to as “The Lord.”
Read Mark 11:4-6...
4 They went away and found a colt tied at the door, outside in the street; and they untied it.
5 Some of the bystanders were saying to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?”
6 They spoke to them just as Jesus had told them, and they gave them permission.
The disciples find the donkey and are given permission to untie it and take it
(Matthew 21:2)
2 saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied there and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to Me.
records that there was also a mare with a colt.
Read Mark 11:7-10...
7 They brought the colt to Jesus and put their coats on it; and He sat on it.
8 And many spread their coats in the road, and others spread leafy branches which they had cut from the fields.
9 Those who went in front and those who followed were shouting:
“Hosanna!
BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD;
10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David;
Hosanna in the highest!”
The people’s display is based on the ancient practice
(cf. 2Kings 9:12-13)
12 They said, “It is a lie, tell us now.” And he said, “Thus and thus he said to me, ‘Thus says the LORD, “I have anointed you king over Israel.”’”
13 Then they hurried and each man took his garment and placed it under him on the bare steps, and blew the trumpet, saying, “Jehu is king!”
of showing homage to a new king; the people seemed to express acceptance of Christ as the Messiah, and King of the Jews.
Matthew 21:5
5 “SAY TO THE DAUGHTER OF ZION,
‘BEHOLD YOUR KING IS COMING TO YOU,
GENTLE, AND MOUNTED ON A DONKEY,
EVEN ON A COLT, THE FOAL OF A BEAST OF BURDEN.’”
The people were excited, throwing down their outer garments and
(cf. John 12:13,),
13 took the branches of the palm trees and went out to meet Him, and began to shout, “Hosanna! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD, even the King of Israel.”
palm branches; these are symbolic of their hope and desire for the Messiah-King to come and free them from their Roman oppression.
The people shouted
(Mark 11:9)
9 Those who went in front and those who followed were shouting:
“Hosanna!
BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD;
"Hosanna!" meaning “Save!” The actual Hebrew word is Hosha’na, is a contraction of the words "save" and "please," this is a shout of prayerful expectation, exhibiting adoration, praise, and joy to the One who has come to save them, e.g.,
Psalm 118:25-26,
25 O LORD, save us;
O LORD, grant us success.
26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD,
from the house of the LORD [i.e., heaven] we praise you.”
The people are acknowledging that God has indeed come down from heaven in this Jesus [Immanuel], to save His people.
John 1:1-3,
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 He was in the beginning with God.
3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.
John 1:14,
14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
John 1:18,
18 No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.
Jesus came down from the Father, to show us the Father, to save us! Jesus’ name means "God saves," or "God's Salvation.”
In Mark 11:10
10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David;
Hosanna in the highest!”
the people praise the coming Davidic Kingdom when the Messiah-King will rule on earth for 1000 years.
The Jews were waiting for the Messiah to come and liberate them from their Gentile oppressors [the Romans], just as God had done when He set the Hebrews free from Pharaoh in Egypt.
The Jews believed the Messiah would bring prosperity and peace, and that He would sit on the throne of David; but they didn’t understand that at His first advent, He would free them from the penalty of sin, and at His second (future) advent, He would sit on the throne of David the Shepherd King, for the Bible says Jesus is
The Good Shepherd;
(cf. John 10:14,
14 I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me,
The Chief Shepherd
1Peter 5:4,
4 And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.
Matthew 21:10-11,
10 When He had entered Jerusalem, all the city was stirred, saying, “Who is this?”
11 And the crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth in Galilee.”
Read Mark 11:11a...
11a Jesus entered Jerusalem and came into the temple;
Jesus goes to the Temple, and He looks around the inner and outer courts; nothing is hidden from His eyes, and what He sees enrages Him.
Matthew 21:12-13;
12 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves.
13 And He said to them, “It is written, ‘MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER’; but you are making it a ROBBERS’ DEN.”
Luke 19:45-46
45 Jesus entered the temple and began to drive out those who were selling,
46 saying to them, “It is written, ‘AND MY HOUSE SHALL BE A HOUSE OF PRAYER,’ but you have made it a ROBBERS’ DEN.”
tell us, Jesus entered the temple and drove out all those who were buying and selling in the temple; He overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves, saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’; but you are making it a robbers’ den.”
Read Mark 11:11b…
11b and after looking around at everything, He left for Bethany with the twelve, since it was already late.
Mark tells us, as does
Matthew 21:17,
17 And He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and spent the night there.
that Jesus returned to Bethany (with His disciples, “the twelve”) for the night, as it was getting late, and no doubt, it had been a very long day.
There is so much more taking place during the rest of Passion Week; as Jesus pours out His love for Israel, teaching them (mostly on Monday and Tuesday) what the Father wants them to know; Wednesday seems to be a day of rest, without recorded events, and Thursday Jesus spends Passover with the Twelve.
During the long evening of the Passover (John 13-17), Jesus makes it clear to His disciples that He is the Lamb of God who will be sacrificed, and it will be His blood that will be shed for the sins of the people.
Next Wednesday night we will study what the Bible discloses about that last Passover, when Jesus unveiled the New Covenant through His death.
Next Friday, Good Friday, we will study what took place when Jesus was arrested, beaten, falsely tried and convicted, flogged almost to death, and then executed by crucifixion, fulfilling God’s gracious and merciful plan to save us.
Romans 3:23-24,
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
24 being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;
Romans 5:8,
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 6:23,
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:1,
1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Ephesians 1:13,
13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation--having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,
Ephesians 2:8,
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;
Jesus took upon Himself our punishment, making full payment for all sin for all people, for all time. The most important decision you will ever make, will be in response to what was forever accomplished during Passion Week.
Jesus Christ entered Jerusalem on a donkey’s colt with the people praising Him; but by the end of the week, they rejected, reviled, and then crucified Him.
Jesus Christ enters your life when you genuinely believe in Him for salvation.
1Corinthians 15:1-4,
1 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand,
2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
Romans 10:9-10,
9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;
10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.
Romans 10:13,
13 for “WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.”
Romans 10:17,
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
1John 5:11-13,
11 And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
12 He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.
13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.
Do you have the assurance of salvation? If you don’t, then I urge you, right now, right here, be reconciled to God in Christ. Everyone who repents of their sin, believing in God’s Son for salvation, will be saved.
God turns no one away, He will never leave or forsake you, and He will bring you into heaven where you’ll spend eternity with Him and with all those who belong to Him, by faith in Jesus Christ.
Pastor Mike
>’(((><