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Zechariah 9:9
Intro: Today is Palm
Sunday. This is the day when
Christian people around the world commemorate the triumphal entry of our
Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ into Jerusalem.
It was on that remarkable day that Jesus was both praised by His
disciples and rejected by the very people He had come to save. For it was on that day that Jesus presented
Himself to Israel as their promised Messiah and King, and it was on that day
that they refused to believe on Him.
In less than a week the very people who should have welcomed this King
saw to it that He was crucified.
This morning I want
to preach about this King. I want to
point out three aspects of this King’s coming. Let’s take the time this morning to look at
three special passages of Scripture that talk about the coming of the
King. I want to preach for a while on
this thought: The King Is Coming!
I. Zech. 9:9 THE
PROPHECY OF THE COMING KING
(Ill. When Zechariah penned these words, Jerusalem was still in
ruins. It had been destroyed by the
Babylonians in 586 BC. It is now about
520 BC and a few Jews have returned to the devastated city and have begun the
process of rebuilding the city and the Temple of God. But, Zechariah does not focus on the
tragedy of a broken city. He looks
down the telescope of time and sees a day when Jerusalem will be visited by
The King of Kings and Lord of Lords!
The prophet sees the day when Messiah will come and Jerusalem will be
filled with His glory. Notice three
elements of Zechariah’s prophecy regarding this coming King.)
A. This Is A Powerful Prophecy – “He is just, and having
salvation” - Zechariah writes to tell the people that the most
anticipated event in human history is going to come to pass in
Jerusalem. Ever since Adam and Eve
sinned in Eden, Gen. 3, hopeful
men had been looking by faith to a day when a Redeemer would come and pay
man’s sin debt, Gen. 3:15. For thousands of years men had been
approaching altars, bringing with them the blood of animals to cover their sins,
looking ahead to a day when a Redeemer would come to take away sin
forever. Zechariah tells them that
there One Who is coming Who will do more than cover sin, He will save people
from their sins!
That was the
promise of the angel who announced the birth of Jesus to Joseph, Matt. 1:21. That was the pronouncement made by John the
Baptist, John 1:29. And, that was just what Jesus did when He
came to this world. He went to the
cross and did what millions of gallons of animal blood had not been able to
do. He paid the entire debt of sin
owed by mankind, Heb. 10:11-14;
9:11-14.
B. This Is A Precise Prophecy – Zechariah told his readers
exactly how they would be able to recognize this King when He came to
them. He would come to them riding “upon
a colt of an ass.” Daniel, in
his book, adds to this prophecy, Dan.
9:24-27. In these verses, God's plan for the nation of Israel is on
display. God will finish His work with Israel during a 70 week period.
1. These are weeks of years and not days - Dan 9:27; Dan. 12:11
2. This is a 490 year period.
3. A general
chronology is:
a. They will begin
with the order to rebuild Jerusalem - v.25a
(Fulfilled in Neh. 2:1-6, by
Artaxerxes, on March 14, 445 B.C.)
b. The next phase
covers 69 weeks of years broken down into two portions, v.25b
1. It took 7 weeks of
years, or 49 years to rebuild Jerusalem. All of this during times of great
trouble. (Ill. Nehemiah)
2. From that time,
there were 62 weeks of years, or 434 years until Messiah was to come. If
taken literally, these 483 years
leading up to the coming of Messiah would equal 173,880 days. Ending on Sunday, April 6, 32 AD, or the exact day Jesus entered Jerusalem
on the donkey!
c. After Messiah comes, there are several prophetic events that
will take place:
1. Messiah will be
cut off - The crucifixion! (Ill. This is why the Jews refused Him, and still
do - 1 Cor. 1:23; (Ill. Hidden
from the Jew - Matt. 16:21)
(Notice: Not for Himself - 1 Cor. 5:21!)
2. Jerusalem will
again be destroyed - Matt. 24:1-2.
Fulfilled in 70 A.D. by Titus the Roman general.
3. There will be a
great war that will engulf Israel - Eze.
38-39. Russia and her allies will invade Israel.
4. 69 weeks, or 483
years of the prophecy have been literally fulfilled, there is one week, or 7
seven years remaining.
What does all this
mean? Jesus, the King came exactly as
the Old Testament had said He would.
He also came at the exact moment that Old Testament had said He would. He fulfilled this prophecy to the letter!
(Ill. What are the odds that one man could fulfill the
prophecies fulfilled during the earthly life of Jesus? "The following probabilities are taken
from Peter Stoner in Science Speaks (Moody Press, 1963) to show that
coincidence is ruled out by the science of probability. Stoner says that by
using the modern science of probability in reference to just eight
prophecies, (Note: Over 300
prophecies were fulfilled to the letter, just during His first advent!) ‘we
find that the chance that any man might have lived down to the present time
and fulfilled all eight prophecies is 1 in 1017."
That would be 1 in
100,000,000,000,000,000. In order to help us comprehend this staggering
probability, Stoner illustrates it by supposing that "we
take 1017 silver dollars and lay them on the face of Texas. They
will cover all of the state two feet deep. Now mark one of these silver
dollars and stir the whole mass thoroughly, all over the state. Blindfold a
man and tell him that he can travel as far as he wishes, but he must pick up
one silver dollar and say that this is the right one. What chance would he
have of getting the right one? Just the same chance that the prophets would
have had of writing eight prophecies and having them all come true in any one
man."
Stoner considers 48
prophecies and says, we find the chance that any one man
fulfilled all 48 prophecies to be 1 in 10 to the 157the power, or 1 followed
by 157 zeros!)
What does this mean?
Jesus is Who He claims to be!
C. This Is A Personal Prophecy – “thy King cometh unto thee”
– Zechariah tells his readers that this coming King was coming for
individuals. As we have noted over the
last several Sunday morning services, Jesus ministered to people. The individual was on His heart and at the
very heart of His ministry. Note such
verses as Luke 19:10; John 3:16, “whosoever”. In the great parables of Luke 15, Jesus is seen looking for
the sheep, the silver and the son, one on one! He came for you! Ill. Acts 16:31!
II. Luke 19:28-40 THE PRESENTATION OF THE COMING KING
(Ill. When the King that Zechariah and Daniel saw did finally
come, He came with all the proofs necessary to declare that He was the One
the world had been looking for. As
Luke describes the events of the day when the King presented Himself to His
people, we can see the He had all the credentials He needed to prove He was
Who He claimed to be!)
A. v. 37 He
Came With The Right Authentication – “Mighty works” – These
two words describe the ministry of Jesus to the letter. From His miraculous conception through all
the great things He did, the life of Jesus was a life of miracles. Of course, this was to be the calling car
of the coming King. Isa. 61:1-2. In the early part of His ministry, Jesus
claimed to be the fulfillment of those verses, Luke 4:16-32. Not only did
He claim to be the Messiah, He proved it by healing the sick, casting out
devils, raising the dead, and displaying His authority over nature. Jesus authenticated His claim to be the
Messiah by the miracles He performed.
B. v. 37-38 He
Came With The Right Announcements – “began to rejoice and praise God
with a loud voice…” – Not only was the life of Jesus authenticated by
the right works, it was also proven by the right words. His disciples praised Him just as Zechariah
had said they would. The angels that announced His birth proclaimed Him to be
the One, Luke 2:9-11. Even the devils and demonic spirits knew
Who Jesus was while He walked here, Mark
5:6-8. Besides that, Isaiah had
said that the Messiah’s coming would be preceded by the ministry of a “forerunner,”
Isa. 40:3-5. John the Baptist was the fulfillment of
this prophecy, John 1:19-31. All the evidence says that He is Who He
claimed to be!
C. v. 39-40 He
Came With The Right Adversaries – As Jesus is entering the city as
the King, His enemies know exactly what is happening! They knew about the words of Daniel and
Zechariah. They knew that Jesus was
presenting Himself that day, in their presence as the King of Israel! However, they had no intention of believing
this Man, and in less than a week, they join with their enemies, the Romans,
and demand His death on a cross! Of
course, the Old Testament prophets said it would be this way, Isa. 53:3; Zech. 13:6. And, it was! When the King came to His Own people, they
refused to receive Him as their King, John
1:11. (Ill. Luke 22:2; John 5:18;
John 7:1; John 19:15.)
D. He Came With The Right Accomplishment – Isaiah had said
that when Messiah came, He would give His life for His people. Isa. 53:1-12. And, that is exactly what Jesus did. His Own people rejected Him and demanded
His death in the cross. So, He was
condemned to die and He went to Calvary and died on the cross. He died a horrible, excruciating death to
make a way for you to be saved. When
Jesus died on that cross, He made a way for “whosoever will” to be
saved, Rev. 22:17. When He
cried “It is finished,” John
19:30, it really was! The debt of
sin had been paid forever and a new and living way had been opened to
God. Hew died for you so that you
might live in Him, 2 Cor. 5:21.
(Note:
Friends, you can either receive Jesus, or you can reject Him, but you need to
know that He is Who the Bible says He is!
It has been proven in more ways than you and I can imagine. Jesus is the King of Kings! He is the Savior of men. He is the ONLY way to God, John 14:6!)
III. Rev. 19:11-16 THE
PROMISE OF THE COMING KING
(Ill. This great King came and died just like the prophets said
that He would. However, that was not
the end of His story! Three days after
He died on that cross, He arose from the dead, Matt. 28:1-6. Of course,
this is just what the Old Testament said would happen, Psa. 16:10. (Ill. You
can’t keep a God-Man down!) After He
arose, He went back to Heaven, Acts
1:9-11, with the promise that He would come again someday! Let me tell you now, when He comes then, He
is not going to come like He did the first time! Nothing will be like it was then!)
A. v. 11a The
Promise Of His Appearing – Even before the King went away, there was
the promise of His return. He said so
Himself, John 14:1-3. Paul talked about His coming again, 1 Thes. 4:16-17. His coming should
not catch men off guard since it has been so well announced, but it will, Rev. 1:7. (Ill. Are you ready for His coming? Ill. His coming will be in two distinct
stages: Rapture and glory! You need to be ready for the first part, because
He will not send an announcement of warning, He will just come, Matt. 24:44.)
B. v. 11-16 The
Promise Of His Authority – The first time He came, He was
indistinguishable from the other men of His time, Isa. 53:1-2. When He came
the first time, He did not have a home or a place to lay His head, Matt. 8:20. When He came the first time, men mocked
Him, rejected Him and put Him to death.
But, when He comes the next time, things are going to be
different! You see, He isn’t coming as
“the
lowly Nazarene”; He is coming as the King of Kings and Lord of
Lords. This time He isn’t coming to
redeem man, He is coming to rule over men, Rev. 2:27. He will not be
mocked this time, but He will put all of His enemies under His feet. Men will not put Him to death this time,
but with the word of His mouth, He will subdue and destroy the enemies of
God!
C. v. 16 The
Promise Of His Adjudication – Verse
16 tells that this coming King is the “KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS”. He is the ruler of rulers. As a ruler, He will occupy a throne and He
will govern. He will reign in
righteousness, perfection and glory on this earth for 1,000 years, Rev. 20:1-10. At the end of that period, Satan and all of
his followers will be cast into Hell forever!
Then, Rev. 20:11-15 tells
us that this King will sit upon a great white throne and that He will judge
the lost and will condemn each one to the lake of fire forever. Notice Rev.
20:15, “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into
the lake of fire.”
I point that
out to say this: This King Who came in peace, love and grace to give His life
on a cross to save lost souls will one day return as a ruling Monarch. In that day, all those who have refused His
gift of salvation, will be cast into the lake of fire. In other words, the very One Who could be
your Savior today will be your judge on that day! No amount of pleading or praying will
change His mind. The day of grace will
have passed forever and you will be eternally lost. You will be forever separated from God,
from saved loved ones, from everything of beauty and pleasure. You will be cast into a place of eternal
punishment, eternal death and eternal horror.
Friend, the
best thing you can do today is to come to Jesus Christ and be saved. If you have never been saved, today it the
day when you need to do just that!
Today, He will receive you and He will be your Savior, John 6:37. If you wait and die lost, then the One Who
could have saved you will be the One Who will condemn you!
Conc: I have tried to show
you today that Jesus is Who the Bible says that He is! He is the Son of God. He is the Lamb of God. He is the only Way to God. Do you know Him as your personal
Savior? Has there ever been a moment
in your life when you called on Him by faith and were saved from your sins?
Here’s the bottom
line. It all comes down to this: If
you died today and stood before God up in Heaven and He looked down and you
and you looked up at Him and He said, “Why should I let you in to My heaven?”
What would you say? Are you
saved? Are you sure? Are you serving? Are you thankful? If you
need Him, He is here for you! You come
if He is calling!
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Monday, April 21, 2014
THE KING IS COMING
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