Our Beliefs : Sermons : Sermon Archive - 2005 : March 20, 2005
Jesus Chose His Road
Palm Sunday
If you drop a popsicle on the ground on a summer day and leave it there for five minutes, what will eventually find that sugary popsicle? Ants, right? I don't know how it works, but ants can sense sugar from miles away, it seems. If you have a big pile of dirt somewhere near where people live, what will eventually find that pile of dirt? Kids -- right, moms? I don't know what it is about kids and dirt, but it almost seems like kids have special antennas that tell them: "Dirt nearby. Mom will be angry, but I sense dirt. Must go. Must get dirty. Must get clothes dirty." I once knew a little boy -- we'll call him Billy -- who was playing on this huge pile of dirt where a new house was being built. All the neighborhood kids were there because, where there's dirt, there's kids. It was Saturday night -- bath night. And as it was getting dark, Billy knew that soon the worst words known to man would be yelled by his mother: "Billy, it's time to come in and take your bath." Usually Billy would try to stay as long as possible in the dirt, until his mother yelled a second or third time. But this time was different. Billy went right home when his mother called the first time, so he was in and out of the tub -- squeaky clean, his mother's favorite child. But his mother needed someone to get Billy's brothers and sisters in who were still playing on the dirt pile. His mother looked at him for a long time and finally said, "Billy, I want you to get them, but don't you dare get dirty again or you will regret it." You can probably guess what happened. That night Billy learned how much moms hate dirt. That night Billy also learned the meaning of the phrase, "You've made your bed; now you have to lie in it." And it didn't mean that he could go to bed all dirty. No, Billy was grounded for a month.
Today is Palm Sunday, the day on which Jesus came riding into Jerusalem amidst the shouts of hundreds of people. But looks can be deceiving because only days later Jesus would be hanging on a cross, a despised criminal. But that wasn't by chance. Jesus didn't accidentally fall into the hands of his enemies. Jesus didn't accidentally do something and then regretfully had to deal with the consequences -- he didn't make his bed and have to lie in it. No, Jesus made his bed knowing full well what was in his bed -- pain, misery, rejection, and death. There were many roads Jesus could have walked or ridden down that day, but Jesus Chose His Road, and this morning we'll find out why he did it.
"Everything is going according to plan." Generals like to hear that expression. It means that after all the training and hard work that he put in to get his troops ready for a specific battle plan, everything was going just as he wanted it to go. The two disciples that Jesus sent ahead to get the donkey might have said something similar when they came back with the donkey and its foal because everything happened just as Jesus said it would -- but they had no idea just what that plan was. But Jesus did. He had chosen his road into Jerusalem long ago -- in fact, even before he created the world -- and now his plans were finally reaching their fulfillment. His time had finally come. You might recall earlier in Jesus' ministry after he healed a man possessed by demons or after he revealed his glory to his disciples that he told them not to tell anyone what they had witnessed. Why would Jesus say those things? Because he still had to teach his disciples what he wanted them to know, and he still had to tell people who he was -- the Savior of the world. Whe he had said that, the time wasn't right. But now it was different. In fact, he purposely was riding down the road right into the enemy's stronghold -- Jerusalem. Jesus had just raised a man from the dead in Bethany which was only a few miles from Jerusalem. A huge crowd was following from Bethany, and the word was spreading like wildfire. Crowds were gathering to meet him from Jerusalem as well. His enemies who were looking for a way to kill him had the perfect chance. Why was Jesus riding into Jerusalem? Because the time was right.
Jesus had a number of roads he could have walked down that day. He easily could have started a riot to overthrow his religious enemies who wanted him dead. But he didn't. With all these people, he easily could have attacked the Romans who were oppressing his people, the Jews, and done what probably many in the crowd wanted him to do -- throw off Roman tyranny so he could be a political and worldly savior. He would have been the greatest hero since King David. But he didn't do that either. And above all, Jesus could have stayed as far away from Jerusalem as possible -- then his enemies never would have been able to capture him. But Jesus didn't do that either. In fact, as Jesus later told the Roman Governor Pontius Pilate, it was for this reason that he was born. So Jesus chose his road to ride into Jerusalem and be put to death on the cross.
And so we see that Jesus wasn't a helpless victim of circumstances beyond his control. No, Jesus was in control. He told his disciples exactly what to expect when getting the donkey and colt, and it came exactly true. Jesus knew what was happening even if his disciples didn't yet. But it was part of a bigger plan. "This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: 'Say to the Daughter of Zion, "See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey." ' " Everything was going according to plan. Why else did Jesus ride into Jerusalem? To fulfill Scripture.
Not only did Jesus know what he had to do; he did it, even though he knew what it would cost him. Jesus was ready to fulfill other prophecies from the Old Testament Scriptures as well, like Isaiah's which talks about the coming Savior being pierced and crushed for sins not his own, and the Psalms which talk about the coming Savior being forsaken by God. Jesus chose his road. He knew that betrayal by a supposed close friend was ahead of him and agony in the Garden of Gethsemane and humiliating treatment by Roman soldiers and kings and even his own people and scourging and thorns and nails digging into and through his flesh and finally even being forsaken by God his own Father himself. Jesus made his bed, and now he was going to lie in it. But why did he ride into Jerusalem knowing fully that all these things awaited him? Because he knew it had to happen this way so he could be our Savior. You and I have sinned against our God, and the Bible tells us that because of those sins we deserve to be separated from God forever. We couldn't save ourselves because to do that we'd have to be perfect. So God foresaw all the bad things we and every other sinner have done in our lives, and he decided to save us from those sins. But the only way to do it would be to pay the price of those sins. The Bible says, "The wages of sin is death." That means being separated forever from God in hell. So in order to save us, God had to suffer that hell in our place. He had to die so we wouldn't have to die for our sins. So why did Jesus ride into Jerusalem? To die for us to forgive our sins. And that's what he did five days after he rode into Jerusalem -- he was forsaken by God on the cross because he loved us. So what's another reason Jesus rode into Jerusalem? Because he loved us.
I think we often look at it from our side -- Jesus died on the cross and suffered the punishment for our sins so that we wouldn't have to spend an eternity away from God. But maybe we should look at it from Jesus' perspective. Jesus chose his road because he didn't want to be separated from us forever. It's the feeling you have for someone when you just want to be around them all the time and would do anything for that person. We call that love. That unending and boundless love made him go down that road that led to his death. Jesus had made his bed -- or better yet, we made Jesus' bed -- and now Jesus would willingly lie in it. Jesus chose his road and rode into Jerusalem so he could live with us forever in heaven.
The joy of the people on Palm Sunday was obvious. "A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, 'Hosanna to the Son of David!' 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!' 'Hosanna in the highest!' " They gave Jesus the welcome of a conquering hero. Why? Some saw him as a political savior -- one who would save them from the Romans who ruled over them at the time. Others thought he was a great teacher or lived a moral life or they wanted to see him perform another miracle. Some just went along with the crowd. But many, by calling him the Son of David and one who comes in the name of the Lord, showed that they saw him as their Savior from sin.
What do we see Jesus as? And does that show itself in our lives? It's very easy not to. Do we just blend into the crowd and live our lives just like any other person in this world so that our friends don't see any difference between someone who worships their money or themselves and us who worship Jesus? Do we sing God's praises on Sunday with others in church but then live our lives differently during the week? What road of life do we choose? For each of us it's different. Teenagers have a choice between choosing the road of popularity and being cool which also means sometimes doing things God doesn't want them to do, or following the road that pleases Jesus. Parents can choose not to bring their children to hear God's Word on a regular basis in church or by not telling their children at home how important Jesus is at home. Middle-aged folks might have a road in front of them that says they can try to make it big in this world regardless of how it affects their relationship with Jesus. Older folks can walk down that road of complaining and being bitter because of all the aches and pains they have now. Or, all of those people can choose the road that follows Jesus.
Jesus had a number of roads to take as well -- the road leading into Jerusalem or the many roads leading away from it. But Jesus chose his road. It led straight into Jerusalem. Right into the hands of his enemies. Right into the righteous and wrathful hand of the punisher of sin -- God himself. But Jesus chose that road in your place. He walked straight down every one of our roads of sin, and even though he didn't sin once and didn't deserve to be punished at all, he went to the end of each of those roads of sin. And what awaited him at the end of each of those roads as he walked them in our place? Death. Our death. Because that is what we deserve. But Jesus took all our sins and all our deaths on himself when he laid down his perfect life on the cross. Since Jesus laid down his life to take away every one of our sins and bring us to God, he asks us every day to make a choice just as Joshua asked of the believers in the Old Testament: "Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve...as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." (Joshua 24:15) You have two roads in front of you. One that pleases God and one that pleases your sinful flesh and the devil and the world. Which will you choose? Since Jesus chose his road which led to his death in your place, and since he chose you to believe in him and serve him, you can choose the road of service to God. Amen.
