The Rev. Herbert G. Hand
Faith Anglican Church
Palm Sunday
March 16, 2008
Title:
Jesus Endured Insult and Death for Your Salvation
Text: Matthew 26:36-27:66
I.
Passion Play (Faith Drama Team)
The worship service begins with the Palm and Pony
procession of Jesus= triumphal entry. The dramatic reading begins with
Jesus praying in the
II.
Jesus’ Triumphal Entry
As Jesus
entered
They
shouted,
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest!”
Jesus is
the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. He deserves:
All the praise,
All the Hosannas,
All glory, laud,
and honor.
III.
Expecting an Unbiblical Messiah
Yet,
their hosannas quickly turned to hatred.
Their
accolades turned to accusations.
Their
loyalty turned to lies.
Jesus was
not the type of Messiah they had hoped for. They had read the Holy
Scriptures with blinders on, only accepting what made them comfortable:
They wanted a military Messiah to defeat the Romans.
They wanted a money Messiah to usher in a new era of
prosperity.
They wanted a mighty Messiah to restore the form glory of
the nation of
When
Jesus didn’t meet their expectations, they quickly turned on Him and demanded
His death:
“Crucify him! Crucify him!”
Unfortunately,
today people do the same thing. They read the Scriptures with blinders
on, accepting only what makes them comfortable. They have unbiblical
expectations of Jesus. When Jesus and His church do not meet their
expectations, in their own way, they cry,
“Crucify him! Crucify him!”
Yet,
Jesus willingly endured insult, suffering, misunderstanding, and death for your
salvation.
First
John chapter four says,
10This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his
Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
1 John 4:10 (NIV)
IV.
Jesus Willingly Laid Down His Life for Us
In John
chapter ten, Jesus said,
14“I am the good shepherd; I know my
sheep and my sheep know me—15just as the Father knows me and I know
the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep.
John 10:14-15 (NIV)
At first
glance, it appears that Jesus’ death was a tragic injustice:
He committed no sins.
He had done no wrong.
At first
glance, it appears that Jesus died due:
To the Pharisee’s jealousy.
To the Sadducee’s greed.
To the Roman’s fear of civil
unrest.
The truth
is no one took Jesus life from Him, He willingly laid it down.
Jesus
said,
18No one takes...[my life] from me, but I lay
it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take
it up again....”
John
10:18 (NIV)
Why did
Jesus lay down His life?
Because He knew the terrible price which had to be paid
for the cleansing of your sins.
Because He didn’t want you to be
eternally separated from Him.
Because He wants you to enjoy life
eternally with Him.
The Bible
tells us in Romans 6:23:
23For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in
Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans
6:23 (NIV)
Through
his death on the cross, Jesus has purchased the gift of your eternal life.
Have you
accepted His gift?
Have you
opened his gift?
Have
embraced his gift?