Essentials Of The Faith / Sunday Morning Sermon Series / Special Services / Easter Season 2010

Palm Sunday 2010

Message: ‘The Long and Winding Road’    Text: Luke 19:28-46

Introduction: A little boy was sick on Palm Sunday and stayed home from church with his mother. His father returned from church holding a palm branch. The little boy was curious and asked, ‘Why do you have that palm branch, dad?’ He replied ‘You see, when Jesus came into town, everyone waved Palm Branches to honor him, so we got Palm Branches today.’ The little boy replied, ‘Aw man! The one Sunday I miss is the Sunday that Jesus shows up!’  (Thomas Bowen)

Yes...this is Palm Sunday and by now I hope you can sense the presence of Jesus in our midst.

Palm Sunday is a church holiday that’s centered on the road Jesus took on His way to Jerusalem. We celebrate it by singing. And I’m glad because I love music (singing and listening) My favorite group is The Beatles. And one of my faviote songs by the Beatles is ‘The Long and Winding Road.’  Here’s the first verse:

The long and winding road that leads to your door will never disappear. I’ve seen that road before. It always leads me here. 

Lead me to you door.

Paul McCartney wrote about a long road with many turns that had a specific purpose...to lead him to someone’s door (in this case it was music itself) And the road will not disappoint him, he will arrive at his destination, if he takes that road.

It had been a long and winding road for Jesus that began in Heaven and lead to the cross in Jerusalem. By that first Palm Sunday, the long and winding road Jesus was traveling on was quickly coming to an end. But we can see his destination throughout the Gospel of Luke:

·       Luke 9:51 ‘As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.’

·       Luke 13:22 ‘Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem.’

·       Luke 17:11 ‘Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee.’

·       Luke 18:31 ‘Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled.’

·       Luke 19:28 ‘After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.’

·       Luke 19:41 ‘As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it.’

Clearly, Jesus had a sense of purpose as He traveled that long and winding road to Jerusalem. 

·       And it’s my prayer that by the end of this service, you too will have a renewed sense of purpose on the road you are traveling. 

·       It’s my hope that you’ll see that Jesus, is the long and winding road that leads to the door of Heaven

And that Road will never disappoint. When you travel the road of life with Jesus, you will reach your destination: eternal life in Heaven.

Transition: Open your Bibles to Luke 19:28 (pg. 803 in the Bibles under the chair in front of you.) For it’s there we’ll examine the long and winding road, that led to Jerusalem.

A. Luke 19:28-35

Read: Luke 19:28-35

The road to Jerusalem was a familiar one for Jesus and His disciples, they had traveled it many times before. But this time would be different. It would be Jesus’ last. And He would be riding into town instead of walking. Why is this significant? Let me briefly explain.

·       Jesus rode a colt, a young donkey: This tells us that on the road of life God can use the weak, the young, the insignificant. That means He can ever use you and me.

·       Jesus rode a colt, a young donkey: Kings and important people rode horses, associated with war. Jesus rode a donkey, associated with peace. Reminding us that He brings peace on the road ravaged with pain, chaos and suffering.

·       Jesus rode a colt, a young donkey: It was considered a beast of burden. Reminding us that on the road of life, Jesus carries our burden of sin.

·       Jesus rode a colt, a young donkey: Because it was prophesized in Zechariah 9:9 ‘Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’ This reminds us that each step on the road of life, God keeps His promises.

·       The colt had never been ridden before: Just getting on it was a miracle...Jesus’ presence tamed the colt so He could ride it. On the road of life, with the anxiety of the unknown twists and turns, Jesus calms our stormy soul.

·       The colt belonged to someone else: Jesus gave two of His disciples specific instructions concerning the colt. And they followed His instructions to a T. This tells us of the importance of One: our need to be willing to serve God and Two: our need to trust God even when what He’s saying doesn’t make sense to us.

Transition: Yes this was a familiar road for Jesus, but this time it was different. It would be His last. However, the people in the crowd and His disciples who followed after Him didn’t know that.

B. Luke 19:36-40

Read: Luke 19:36-40

This is perhaps the best known part of Palm Sunday...the reaction of the crowd as Jesus passed by. We’re told:

·       They laid their cloaks on the road before Him. Other accounts say the people waved palm braches. Both were a sign of honor and submission to a King who entered Jerusalem after gaining victory in battle. This reminds us that on the road of life, we must honor Jesus with our lives and submit to Him who fights life’s greatest battles for us and is always victorious.

·       The people joyfully shouted ‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in Heaven and glory in the highest!’ Other accounts record the crowd saying ‘Hosanna to the Son of David! Hosanna in the highest!’ ‘Hosanna’ means ‘Save us now!’ Words we will often hear coming from our lips as we travel the road of life.

·       Some of the religious leaders complained to Jesus about the shouts of joy. You need to know that on the road of life there will always be some who will try to keep you quiet about your love for Jesus.

·       Jesus told the religious leaders ‘If they keep quiet, the stones will cry out!’ This is the first mention in Scripture of a ‘rock concert.’ But the idea is that the crowd was just doing what they were created to do....worship their Creator with shouts of praise.

This reminds us that as we travel the road of life, we should do so with a song in our hearts and shouts of joy coming from our lips, proclaiming the greatness of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

Transition: The crowd shouted with joy...but there was little joy in Jesus’ heart as He traveled the long and winding road to Jerusalem.

C. Luke 19:41-44

Read: Luke 41-44

I want to stop here like Jesus did and ask if Jesus wept you for this morning?

·       Does Jesus see your choice to try to find peace in something other than Him?

·       Does He weep for you because He sees the devastation that choice will bring in your life?

Don’t be like the people of Jerusalem. Receive His peace this morning. Recognize that only your Creator knows what will truly fill your emptiness. And it’s not in the things He made, but in His Son, Jesus.

 

Transition: Jesus arrived in Jerusalem, He’s at the Temple and He’s almost at the end of the road.

D. Luke 19:45-46

Read: Luke 19:45-46

The Temple was built to be

·       the place people met God,

·       the place God spoke to His people,

·       the place people found forgiveness and peace as they journeyed on the road of life.

But the religious leaders had allowed it to become something else...a social club, a market place, a place where the people did what they wanted and failed to do what God wanted.

Did you know that you were created to be the temple of God, the place God dwelled?

Psalm 24:7 says ‘Lift up your heads, O you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in.’

We sang those words in our Gathering Song this morning...you remember? Let me remind you:

Prepare the way; make straight the path for Him.

Let the King of Glory enter in.

Let the King of Glory enter in.

Who is this King of Glory?

The Lord strong and mighty;

the Lord mighty to save.

The earth is full of His glory.

Creation calls, prepare the way.

His love endureth forever. 

His power is without end.

His strength is victory’s treasure.

Let all who call His name prepare the way.

It’s a song, welcoming Jesus into our presence as we began our worship celebration. But it’s so much more. It’s a song welcoming Jesus into our lives and what happens to us when we do:

The Lord strong and mighty;

the Lord mighty to save.

Won’t you open your heats to Jesus this morning? Won’t you welcome Him in as you travel the road of life?

Conclusion

Have you ever gone on a ‘Sunday drive?’ Kathy and I do that often, only it’s on Saturdays and we’re on my motorcycle.

We get our helmets and gloves on, we turn on the MP3 player and disconnect the GPS. Why turn off the GPS? Because we don’t have any specific destination in mind. We come to an intersection and I lean back and ask Kathy, right, left or straight? She decides and off we go.

And it’s fun...until we get lost that is, then the GPS comes back on.

Many people journey the road of life just like that...wandering aimlessly, w/o any real destination in mind. And they do the same in their spiritual life? No planned destination there either. Kind of just putting life on cruise control and going through the motions of being a ‘Christian’ or someone who goes to church.

Can I ask a personal question? Are you living your spiritual life as if you were on a ‘Sunday drive?’

Jesus is inviting you to travel with Him on the road that leads to eternal life. Along this road you will find:

·       Acceptance, Forgiveness, Love, Grace

·       Mercy, Provision, Hope, Healing, Guidance

·       And so much more.

As I se it, the heart of Palm Sunday is a road and you stand at an intersection this morning.

·       Will you journey with Jesus on the long and winding road that leads to eternal life

·       or will you continue on the road wide and busy road that leads to...well, you really don’t want to know where it leads because I promise you won’t like it.

This Palm Sunday, we need to recognize that we are all on a road. And at different places along the road of life, there are intersections marked by the sign of the cross of Jesus Christ.

·       They are opportunities to travel with Him, instead of traveling with the crowd that has no destination in mind.

·       They are opportunities to change direction and set a new course whose destination is heaven.

This moment, right now is one of those intersections.

Perhaps you are already a Christian but have gotten a bit off course. This is the time and the place to get back on the road that leads to faithfully following Jesus to your eternal destination.

Perhaps you are not yet a Christian, this is the time and the place to change directions, to get a purpose in life and to have a final destination in mind...

The long and winding road that leads to your door will never disappear. I’ve seen that road before. It always leads me here. Lead me to you door.

Trust Jesus, ask Him to be your Savior, to forgive your sin and He will lead you safely to your destination....the door of heaven.