Rev. David Holwick M Palm Sunday
First Baptist Church (adapted from March 20, 2005 sermon [below])
Ledgewood, New Jersey
March 29, 2015
John 12:12-19
|
I. Here comes the king.
A. Sometimes kingship is rather unexpected.
Henk Otte is a middle-aged unemployed man on welfare in the
Netherlands.
He lives with his wife and two children in an Amsterdam
housing project and seems completely, absolutely ordinary.
And he was, at least until 1995.
That year, while visiting West Africa with his wife, his life
changed radically.
During that visit, local leaders told Otte that they believed
he was the reincarnation of their deceased tribal chief.
Following seventeen years without a leader, the Ewe tribe, made
up of more than 100,000 people, believed that Otte should
be their king.
And now he is.
In Holland he is Henk Otte.
But in Africa, he is "Togbe," or "king."
His arrival is greeted with celebration.
Throne-bearers carry him through masses of excited subjects.
Drums play, dancers spin, and the focus of all their adoration
is their king, who wears a crown and lives in a
specially-built home.
Several television documentaries have told the story of this
improbable king.
In fact, it's hard to imagine a less-likely king.
Of course there was one....
He grew up in a small town in the middle of nowhere.
He worked for years at a regular job, just like everyone else.
Then one day, about the time he was thirty, he gave up his old
job and started preaching.
He wandered all over the place giving his message, even though
he had no real training.
Finally ran into some trouble with the authorities for claiming
that he was, you guessed it, a "king."
He managed to offend his own people, the local authorities,
and many more.
But on this one day, he was acclaimed as a king.
#7642
B. Kings need certain trappings. What did this one have?
1) Donkey.
a) Used by princes and kings in Old Testament.
b) But used by average people, too.
2) Branches.
a) A nice touch, like Sir Walter Raleigh laying his coat
in a puddle for Queen Elizabeth I.
3) Hosannas.
a) Definitely shows at least some of them welcomed
Jesus as a Jewish king.
4) Loads of people.
a) All politicians get high on crowds.
b) But does popularity guarantee legitimacy?
1> Consider the popularity of current leaders.
New Jersey's Chris Christie - after Hurricane
Sandy his popularity hit 70%. (Today it is 35%)
France's president, Francois Hollande, is worse,
at a paltry 21%.
President Obama has an approval rating of 46%.
Russia's Vladimir Putin - an astronomical 86%.
But there is someone who beats him by a mile.
This leader received ALL the votes in his district.
Not a single person voted against him.
And every single person in the district voted.
He is North Korea's Kim Jong Un.
2> Even legitimate leaders have been very unpopular.
A> Winston Churchill was voted out of office after
all those great speeches in World War II.
c) All of these things are what you would expect for a
king, but none guarantees he was in fact a king.
II. The crowd had mixed motives.
A. Many were there for the thrill factor.
1) The miracles of Jesus were a huge draw.
a) Just before the parade, John 12:9 says:
"Meanwhile a large crowd of Jews found out that
Jesus was there and came, not only because of him
but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from
the dead."
b) Celebrity was a factor even then.
2) Most saw Jesus as no more than a prophet. Matt 21:11
3) So much of the enthusiasm was the enthusiasm of a mob.
B. Some worshipped Jesus with innocent faith.
1) Children praised him.
2) Jesus saw this as a vindication of his mission.
Matthew 21:16 makes it more clear:
"'Do you hear what these children are saying?' they asked
him.
'Yes,' replied Jesus, 'have you never read, "From the lips
of children and infants you have ordained praise"?'"
(Jesus is alluding to Psalm 8:2 in the Old Testament.)
C. A few had a deeper appreciation.
1) We know from the miracle of the loaves that many were
expecting a miracle-working Messiah to appear.
2) The disciples themselves saw Jesus as God's king for the
earth and told him so.
III. No one grasped the fullest meaning.
A. Even his closest followers were clueless.
1) They did not understand Palm Sunday completely until
after Jesus ascended into heaven.
2) It is no different for us.
B. There is always more to learn about Jesus.
1) Not just the facts of the Bible, but the depth of our
relationship with Christ can deepen.
2) We are all still children in our Christian walk.
C. But some of us aren't even children yet.
1) Coming to church during Holy Week doesn't make you a
Christian.
2) A Christian is someone who truly recognizes their debt
to God.
a) We need to be saved, and can't do it ourselves.
b) Only Jesus can save us.
3) Have you asked Jesus to save you?
IV. What it means to welcome Jesus as your king.
A. It takes more than hosannas.
1) Enthusiasm and excitement are good things.
2) But mouthing a few words is not enough.
3) An engraving from the cathedral of Lubeck, Germany, should
give us something to think about:
Thus speaketh Christ our Lord to us,
You call me master and obey me not,
You call me light and see me not,
You call me the way and walk me not,
You call me the life and live me not,
You call me wise and follow me not,
You call me fair and love me not,
You call me rich and ask me not,
You call me eternal and seek me not,
If I condemn thee, blame me not.
#4966
B. Calling him King means making him Lord.
1) It is almost trite to say Jesus is our "Lord and Savior."
a) We get the "savior" part - we are sinners and want
to be forgiven.
1> We want to get off the hook.
2> Saving and forgiving is what he does for us.
b) "Lord" suggests something WE have to do.
1> We can't just honor him, we have to obey him.
2> Jesus is greater than us and asks us to obey him.
2) He wants to be in charge of every area of our life.
C. Where do you need to obey Jesus?
1) Self-control in an area of weakness.
a) Don't be lax about sin.
b) Feel guilty about something, then conquer it.
1> We will remain sinners, but defeat in any
particular area is not inevitable.
2> Seek victory!
2) Stand up for Jesus in the public square.
a) Christian faith is not a purely private faith.
b) He came to be king of this world, and one day everyone
will acknowledge this.
c) This week our Tuesday night Bible study went to see the
movie "Do You Believe?"
1> It challenged us to share our faith even when it
is unpopular, even when it costs us.
V. Choose your king.
A. Kings rise to the throne in one of three ways.
Most are born into that role, and receive it by inheritance.
Some take it by force.
But a few are made king because people decide to make them
king and serve them.
That was the case with Henk Otte.
And that is the case with Jesus Christ.
He serves as king only of those who have chosen to name him
as king.
His subjects have all chosen to let him rule.
Whom have you chosen as your king?
#7642
B. Honoring Jesus in your heart puts life in a different light.
Central Tanzania, Africa. August 5, 1995.
Lined up on their knees were three Southern Baptist
missionaries and two of their children.
The kidnapper asked his two helpers, "Are we going to shoot
them all together or one at a time?"
He pointed his AK-47 assault rifle at them.
The gunman grabbed missionary Sandy Harrington from the
line and forced her to kneel five feet away.
She was absolutely terrified, and her fear had been
escalating throughout the whole ordeal.
But even then, there was a calmness in the midst of her
terror -- a sense of heaven-wardness.
"If they killed me, I'll be with God,' she thought to herself.
The missionaries all grabbed one another's hands and tensed up,
expecting the bullets to hit.
One of them prayed, "Lord, put your angels around us, but
if it's time for us to go, then it's time. Do your will."
He felt that everything was surrendered to God.
Sandy felt a similar peace.
She remembered the Bible verse in the book of Romans saying
nothing could separate them from the love of Christ --
not even death."
Her 10-year-old daughter said, "When I saw the gun, I felt
scared at first.
But I knew I would go to heaven if I was killed, and that
was better than being alive ... so, I didn't care."
Lined up, kneeling, their backs to the gunman, holding hands
and praying aloud, the five expected to die.
Then one of the abductors leaned down and asked one of the
men a question.
"Are you a pastor?"
"Yes, I'm a pastor, a Baptist missionary."
The kidnapper forced them all to take a drugged liquid.
When they woke up, their car was gone but they were alive.
After the ordeal was over, one of the missionaries said,
"We crossed a line, the five of us, that most people
don't cross.
I had peace because I knew Jesus Christ and knew that he
was my Lord and Savior.
I've been someplace in my life that most haven't been, and
I'm going to tell them about it.
Then I'm going to ask them if they can say the same thing
about Jesus that I can say." #3459
=========================================================================
SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:
#3459 “Are You A Padre?” Steve Evans, Online Christianity Today,
August 16, 1995.
#4966 “You Call Me Master and Obey Me Not,” Rev. John Mac Arthur, Jr.,
Rev. Brett Blair's Illustrations, www.sermonillustrations.com,
November 21, 1999. Original source is John MacArthur, Jr.,
The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Matthew 1-7, Moody Press,
1985, page 480.
#7642 “Name Your King,” Mark Phillips, Christianlovenotes, January 26, 2000,
Roddy Chestnut illustration collection. See also
<http://forum.blackhairmedia.com/the-dutchman-who-became-king-of-ghana-tribe_topic311240.html>
These and 35,000 others are part of the Kerux database that can be
downloaded, absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
=========================================================================
Congregational handout:
WELCOME THE KING
================
John 12:12-19
I. Here comes the king.
II. The crowd had mixed motives.
A. Many were there for the thrill factor.
B. Some worshipped Jesus with innocent faith.
C. A few had a deeper appreciation.
III. No one grasped the fullest meaning.
A. Even his closest followers were clueless.
B. There is always more to learn about Jesus.
C. But some of us aren't even children yet.
IV. What it means to welcome Jesus as your king.
A. It takes more than hosannas.
B. Calling him King means making him Lord.
C. Where do you need to obey Jesus?
V. Choose your king.
A. Kings rise to the throne in one of three ways.
B. Honoring Jesus in your heart puts life in a different light.
===============================================================================
Rev. David Holwick J Baptism service
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
March 20, 2005
John 12:12-19
|
I. Here comes the king.
A. His name is Henk Otte.
Henk Otte is a middle-aged unemployed man on welfare in the
Netherlands.
He lives with his wife and two children in an Amsterdam
housing project and seems completely, absolutely ordinary.
And he was, at least until 1995.
That year, while visiting West Africa with his wife, his life
changed radically.
During that visit, local leaders told Otte that they believed
he was the reincarnation of their deceased tribal chief.
Following seventeen years without a leader, the Ewe tribe, made
up of more than 100,000 people, believed that Otte should
be their king.
And now he is.
In Holland he is Henk Otte.
But in Africa, he is "Togbe," or "king."
His arrival is greeted with celebration.
Throne-bearers carry him through masses of excited subjects.
Drums play, dancers spin, and the focus of all their adoration
is their king, who wears a crown and lives in a
specially-built home.
Several television documentaries have told the story of this
improbable king.
In fact, it's hard to imagine a less-likely king.
Of course there was one....
He grew up in a small town in the middle of nowhere.
He worked for years at a regular job, just like everyone else.
Then one day, about the time he was thirty, he gave up his old
job and started preaching.
He wandered all over the place preaching, even though he had
no real training.
Finally ran into some trouble with the authorities for claiming
that he was, you guessed it, a "king."
He managed to offend his own people, the local authorities,
and many more.
But on this one day, he was acclaimed as a king.
#7642
B. The trappings of a king.
1) Donkey.
a) Used by princes and kings in Old Testament.
b) But used by average people, too.
2) Branches.
a) A nice touch, like laying your coat in a puddle for
Queen Elizabeth.
3) Hosannas.
a) Definitely shows at least some of them welcomed
Jesus as a king.
4) Loads of people.
a) Enjoyed by all politicians.
b) But does popularity guarantee legitimacy?
1> Lots of frauds have been popular.
2> Even legitimate leaders have been very unpopular.
A> Winston Churchill was voted out of office.
c) All of these things are what you would expect for a
king, but none guarantee he was in fact a king.
II. Mixed motives of the crowd.
A. Many were there for the thrill factor.
1) The miracle of Lazarus attracted the curious.
a) Celebrity was a factor even then.
2) Most saw Jesus as no more than a prophet. Matt 21:11
3) Much of the enthusiasm was the enthusiasm of a mob.
B. Some worshipped him with innocent faith.
1) Children praised him.
2) Jesus saw this as a vindication of his mission. Matt 21:16
C. A few had a deeper appreciation.
1) We know from the miracle of the loaves that many were
expecting a miracle-working Messiah to appear.
2) The disciples themselves saw Jesus as God's king for the
earth and told him so.
D. None grasped the full meaning.
1) Even his closest followers did not understand Palm Sunday
completely until after Jesus ascended into heaven.
2) It is no different for us.
a) God's ways are beyond our human comprehension, this
side of heaven.
b) There is always more to learn as a Christian.
1> Not just the facts of the Bible, but the depth
of our relationship with Christ can deepen.
2> We are all still children in our Christian walk.
III. What it means to welcome Jesus as your king.
A. More than hosannas.
1) Enthusiasm and excitement are good things.
2) But mouthing a few words is not enough.
3) An engraving from the cathedral of Lubeck, Germany,
should give us something to think about:
Thus speaketh Christ our Lord to us,
You call Me master and obey Me not,
You call Me light and see Me not,
You call Me the way and walk Me not,
You call Me the life and live Me not,
You call Me wise and follow Me not,
You call Me fair and love Me not,
You call Me rich and ask Me not,
You call Me eternal and seek Me not,
If I condemn thee, blame Me not.
#4966
B. The Lordship of Jesus.
1) Regular time with God.
a) Prayer and Bible reading.
b) Christian literature.
2) Commitment to God's people and work.
a) Church attendance.
b) Kingdom involvement.
1> Member of Hillside Lutheran calls me this week.
He wants to do something in Haiti and rally his
church to help.
His motivation: he has a young daughter and he
wants her to have a deeper faith.
2> Do something besides sitting on a padded pew.
3) Self-Control in areas of weakness.
a) Don't be lax about sin.
b) Feel guilty about something, then conquer it.
1> We will remain sinners, but defeat in any particular
area is not inevitable.
2> Seek victory!
4) Stand up for Jesus in the public square.
a) Christian faith is not a purely private faith.
b) He came to be king of this world, and one day he will
be.
c) We have a mandate from God to spread faith, love, and
justice to all the peoples on earth.
IV. Choosing your king.
Kings rise to the throne in one of three ways.
Most are born into that role, and receive it by inheritance.
Some take it by force.
But a few are made king because people decide to make them
king and serve them.
That was the case with Henk Otte.
And that is the case with Jesus Christ.
He serves as king only of those who have chosen to name him
as king.
His subjects have all chosen to let him rule.
Whom have you chosen as your king?
#7642
=========================================================================
SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:
#4966 "You Call Me Master And Obey Me Not," Rev. John Mac Arthur, Jr.,
from Rev. Brett Blair's Illustrations by Email,
www.sermonillustrations.com, November 21, 1999.
#7642 "Name Your King," by Mark Phillips in ChristianLOVENotes, January 26,
2000, from the Roddy Chestnut Illustration Collection.
These and 25,000 others are part of a database that can be downloaded,
absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
=========================================================================
Copyright © 2024 by Rev. David Holwick
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