Divine King (Part 1 of 2)

The taken informal survey asked the people around you think Jesus was a good teacher, priest, prophet, you get all kinds of answers today on Truth for Life. Alastair beg invites us to study a passage in the Bible that clearly identifies Jesus as the divine king John chapter 12 verse 12 the next day the great crowd that had come for the feast. Herod that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem.

They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting hosanna blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord Blessed is the king of Israel.

Jesus found a young donkey and sat upon it as it is written. Do not be afraid or daughter of Zion. See your King is coming. Seated on a donkey's colt at first his disciples did not understand all this only after Jesus was glorified. Did they realize that these things had been written about him and that they had done these things to him now.

The crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continue to spread the word. Many people because they had Herod that he had given this miraculous sign went out to meet him.

So the Pharisees said to one another. See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him. Amen.

I think it's in look to the rock a little book on understanding the Old Testament by Alec McTeer that he suggests that we view the Bible if were trying to get a handle on it as if it were in some ways a detective story where you have all these various themes and plots interwoven through the unfolding story of the book until finally somewhere near the end, all the pieces come together already says you may want to think of it as a book with the answers at the back or perhaps as a two act play and if you come only for the first act and leave at half time and you're going to have to check about how it finished. And if you come only for the second half, then you're going to annoy people who were there for the first time because you spend all your time saying who is that character and why is he saying what he saying I think those things are helpful at it. They run concurrently with what many of us learned in Sunday school, namely that if we take our eyes off Jesus I we will quickly lose our way around the Bible and in the Old Testament. Jesus is predicted in the Gospels, Jesus is revealed in the acts he is preached in the epistles. He is explained and in the book of Revelation.

He is expected and what we been discovering is that there are number if you like of melodic lines to mix our metaphors and similes that are number of melodic lines which run all the way through the Scriptures, and particularly in relationship to Jesus.

These three interwoven aspects which we may think of in those terms, or perhaps in mathematical terms it as a Venn diagram and one circle is Jesus as prophet.

One circle is Jesus as priest. One circle is Jesus as King and where each of these circles intersect. We have the office of Christ in what Calvin referred to as the Muniz triplex.

The threefold die mention of the ministry of Jesus at let's bear in mind that this was an annual occurrence, at least in its most basic die mentions that it was customary for the people of God to make their alley there. I sent up to Jerusalem. On this occasion for this.

This festival, and indeed it would be strange. Had Jesus as a youngster and as a young man, not on many occasions himself have made this very journey, and of course we have a beginning after the longest Psalm in the Bible, beginning with some hundred and 20. We have a whole series of Psalms which are called Psalms of Ascent and some are more familiar than others, but perhaps classically hundred and 21 I lift my eyes to the hills where does my help come from the lift rise up to the temple and they say in Psalm 127 unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain that build it, they look at the surrounding topography of Jerusalem. And they say is the mountains around about Jerusalem so the Lord is round about his people from this day forth, and even forevermore, and families would have prepared for this event and Boys and Girls Club have gone to bed at all excited about what was going to happen on the next day and it is not difficult for me with the relatively fertile imagination that I have that often gets me in trouble to imagine a boy ready to advance with his family.

The following morning, and telling his dad when he comes into his bedroom to to kiss him good night, he tells is that I have all my branches ready. I'm I'm already I've I've I've got them under the bed that and as soon as you waking me up in the morning. I am ready were ready to go where going to go out there and were going to give it a jolly good hosanna and his father said to him that's exactly right. And he said dad sing me that Psalm before I go to sleep sing me off to sleep. Which one do you want to do that one about I rejoice with those who said to me, our feet are standing in your gait.

So Jerusalem let's have that one before we go to bed. It'll set our hearts are right for the morning. It will be able blesses as we sleep and will awaken us to a new day. I rejoice when they said to me.

I let is go to the house of the Lord or in the paraphrase in Scotland hope, please, and blessed was I to hear the people crying come let us seek our God today and yes with a cheerful zeal will haste to Zionsville and there are Volvos and homage.

Now this is the context in which this scene unfolds recorded for us here in John's Gospel, the crowds that were gathering were gathering to celebrate God's intervention in the past and they were gathering in anticipation of the day when all that they had lost would be recovered and all that they long for would be revealed. Remember they had a great anticipation. Even through 400 years of silence in the inter-test mental. Generations coming generations going rising and descending parents, grandparents, little ones generations house moves holidays everything I'm constantly saying to one another, God has promised in his word.

He will send as a prophet.

He has promised in his word. He will send us the great priest. He has promised in his word. He will send us a conquering king, and in light of what had just happened. In Chapter 11 it says it's recorded. Tensions were now running high, and John tells us that many of the people that were present and excitedly present on this occasion had been keyed up even more. As a result of the dramatic events that had happened at the tomb of Lazarus is just fantastic stuff he had called out to Lazarus and Lazarus had come out and of course the Pharisees were absolutely perturbed about this and some prophetically and ironically there in verse 19.

They said this is absolutely hopeless that if this is getting is nowhere at all. Look out of the whole world has gone after him and you know the whole world has gone after him.

The sense of God's Spirit in the northern hemisphere may not be just what it is been in the past, but in the southern hemisphere. It is significant and in sub-Saharan Africa. In much of the chaos and bloodshed and anarchy are the moving of God is remarkable to report and when we take ourselves down into Indonesia and other parts of the world.

When we go down into South America, we discover that God is at work and here we are all these years later and a great concern of the Pharisees remains the concern of all who are opposed to the name and the work of Jesus, look, this seems to be absolutely unstoppable. There's hardly a place in the world.

There's hardly a day in the world.

When Jesus Christ's name is not magnified in praise know when these people came out they didn't a marriage from nowhere.

They were not advancing a new concept that it dawned upon them. But in actual fact, if you were to scroll down is it where if you were to rewind the video you would trace the genesis of all that was taking place here in this scene all the way back to Genesis element is illustrated for you.

For example, let's just letters rewind quickly to the beginning of Luke's gospel and the angel comes and announces the arrival of Jesus and makes it clear that the Lord will give him the throne of his father David. What a stranger dramatic thing to say about the birth of a child. No wonder maybe treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The Lord Yahweh will give him the throne of his father David only thrones.

Are there for kings. That's Luke chapter 1 go through the intertest mental. Zechariah 9 and in Zechariah 9. The prophet comes and says rejoice greatly old daughter of Zion. See, your king comes to you writing on a donkey on the fall of a donkey and the people must've read that and listen to that is it. I wonder what that means and part of that was built in to what was happening to the boy when he put his branches under the bed and anticipated the coming morning because his parents have told them there is a day that the prophets of said will dawn, when the king will come riding on a donkey. Isaiah 30 2C. I.

King will reign in righteousness second Samuel chapter 7 God promises to David that an eternal and universal king will come from his line and all the way back in Genesis 49 and in the blessings of Jacob and in verse 10 we read, the scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs, and the obedience of the nations is his and people read this and wondered about and prayed concerning and longed for the arrival of the king know all of this and more besides is wrapped up in this unfolding drama as Jesus rides into Jerusalem, not on account of fatigue. Interestingly, and you must check yourself. I've done my best on this, but I have found nowhere else in the entire New Testament that gives us a record of Jesus writing there is no record of them taking a taxi if you like it you Julie knew it. During his earthly pilgrimage. This is the only occasion when he writes why does he write he's making a point he's making the significant point. He knows what he's doing is not just something arbitrary when he says to his boys now want you to go in here and you will find a place and you just tell them that the Lord needs that needs they said donkey and and then give it to you and peace big silly disciples. You know where were going through all of this and John is almost always enough the Dell is it the disciples didn't get this at all.

It was only after Jesus was glorified that they began to put the pieces in the jigsaw puzzle together and he rides in and eventually confronted by the establishment political, religious, authoritative pilot says to them.

Are you the king of the Jews are your king and Jesus said yes it is as you say, but then I did make any sense. Certainly not to the Roman authorities. What kind of King rides on a donkey. What kind of King wears a crown made of thorns. What kind of King wears a borrowed row. What kind of King falls foul of such cruel and brutal mockery. You see why it's so important to put these various melodic lines together. If were going to say is it where chorus and understanding of the person and work of Jesus Christ. He is both suffering seven and great high priest and the prophet who ousts our ignorance and the king who comes to rain now with all of that, essentially, by way of introduction, and I don't want that to discourage you. Let me simply make a few observations about the implications of the kingship of Jesus. Thomas Watson in his body of divinity was already recommended to you, writes as follows. He says in subduing Christ's kingly brain is seen in part in subduing us to himself in ruling and defending us and in restraining and conquering all his and our enemies so that if he comes as a prophet of star ignorance. If he comes as a priest to deal with our alienation that he comes also as a king to subdue every dimension of rebellion not least of all the rebellious nature of our own reaction to so let us think first of all about his kingship in terms of salvation and we have tried to build a picture of Jesus in relationship to this of Christ as he deals with sin as he deals with Satan as he deals with death, and as he deals with our guilt and Jesus comes is aware onto the battlefield in much the same way that David came out of the ranks of Israel are confronting all of the encroachments of evil that were embodied in Goliath and you remember there was nobody there that was ready to step forward and eventually David steps forward steps forward alone, but he steps forward as a representative. He steps forward on behalf of the people. He vanquishes Goliath.

The victory is a victory that is shared they share in his triumph, and now Jesus is stepping is aware into the very epicenter of the battle lines. He steps in.

He steps if you like office donkey and into the fray and now out from the black lines comes great. David's greater son and he comes now to resist all of the encroachments of evil everything that is going to be thrown against him in the onslaught of Calvary and he comes to deal with it as a king. And we ought to be very clear that the cross is the epicenter of Christ's reign. The cross is the epicenter of Christ's reign.

It is there that he declares it is finished. It is there that he triumphs over all these things that are ranged against him, and against those for whom he dines, and that is why it is so important for us to turn not only to Jesus but to turn routinely to the cross of Jesus, and it is a reminder to all of us to preach to make sure that we are cross oriented and cross centered in our preaching is surely as we may diverge from the record of the triumphal entry apart from a Sunday or two a year.

It is possible for congregations to go through 50. Sundays without ever hearing their minister or other pastor of their vicar bringing them to the very centrality of the cross of Christ and all that it embodies both for the unbeliever as well as for the Christian, and we need to think in those terms. When we think about his kingship and that's why, in the resurrection. You have really the father's men in relationship to what Jesus has done his kingly reign is central to the work of redemption. Secondly, an observation regarding the kingship of Christ in relationship to the cosmos to the cosmos that might seem a little far-fetched, but you don't learn this at university in secular history, but they these are the facts. It is impossible to understand world history without an understanding of biblical history because the pivotal event of all of human history is in the cross of Christ, and that is why all of our views of history, all of our views of the world have to be formed by and framed by the biblical record and when we unfold the story of Jesus and come to the matter of his kingship. We have to recognize that this has a bidding on the entire cosmos. What is the kingship of Christ have to say about these things will first of all it says the air is not in its present form going to remain as is because the king is going to transform so our concern for it. As Christians is a legitimate concern, just as our concern for animals is a legitimate concern. That's why we don't like it when people take nice beagle dogs and make them smoke cigarettes because God gave us nice dogs to enjoy not to have them smoke cigarettes I can support that as a Christian and as a friend of beagles and labradors another's recipients but I'm trying to point out to you that the kingly reign of Jesus impacts all of these discussions, but changes the view that we have of them and saves us from becoming completely consumed by things as if this was all there is because it isn't all that is we are waiting for the day when there is a new heaven and a new earth in which the relative righteousness.

That doesn't mean that I don't care about all of the beauty that I saw in where is the place. Brands Coleman wanted turn in all the places I adventured around this afternoon by myself on the narrowest roads I've been in for a very long time but I looked over that message of God. You are so magnificent in putting such a fantastic place together. Why can I live in a place like this.

Lord look a fantastic visit and I reminded myself 01 delegates 11 haven't known me a new earth. I'm going to live on a new earth. And if you can make this coastline is nice. Is this in this fallen world, and goodness gracious is going to be fantastic when we get together in that context. So, don't misunderstand me when I say what I'm saying.

But interestingly, in America there are now advancing Eric day Earth Day.

Pretty soon you will build to do anything or say anything about Easter day, but you can do just whatever you please. Concerning Earth Day, and it is routine on the weather forecast or the person's face to open up with the line well good evening and let's see what mother nature has for us this evening. That is a routine introduction in America.

It is the very threshold of an almost all-consuming. Pantheism and against that notion. The Scriptures exalt Jesus Christ as Lord and King's sovereign over all of the cosmos, Abram Kuyper, who was the Prime Minister of Holland in a better day. Can you imagine what Kuyper would think of of the Netherlands today and their moral position. Anyway Kuyper on one occasion, since there is not 1 inch of the entire universe concerning which Jesus Christ does not say this is my this is my this is my father's world. This is my father's world. This belongs to me. I made this I am the king over this your listing to the weekend edition of Truth for Life or midway through a message from Alistair Begg titled divine king.

One of the core components of our mission the Truth for Life is to teach the Bible with clarity and relevance so that believers will be established. This process of cultivating followers of Jesus Christ is something we take very seriously because the Bible commands us to make disciples and be disciples. For this reason were highly recommending a classic book written by the late John Stott. It's called the disciple and in this book John Stott helps us realize God is still actively speaking to his followers today and he's doing that through the Bible. This book helps you understand how to hear God's voice, and more importantly how to follow the guidance he gives you what you're thinking about changing locations work relocating to another community. The biblical principles you find in this book will help you keep your emotions aligned with clear thinking.

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When Jesus rode into Jerusalem he did so as a king and Bob Lapine hoping you can join us next weekend as Alister helps us understand what Jesus triumphal entry revealed about his divine role as King then and now the Bible teaching of Alistair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life for the Learning is for Living