Preached Palm Sunday, April 5, 2009
from Matthew 26:47-56
Theme: We should see the times of suffering and humiliation we may endure as Jesus’ followers as only a part of the “hard road” that leads to ultimate and certain triumph in His kingdom.
(Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.)
Today is Palm Sunday—the day when Christians around the world celebrate our Lord’s triumphant entry into the city of Jerusalem. Even though He rode into the city to die on the cross, it’s appropriate that we celebrate this day with great joy; because it looks ahead to the victory of His resurrection one week later.
In the past, I have sought to preach from a special passage of Scripture in honor of this day. But I have felt led this morning to preach from the passage that falls next in our ongoing study from the Gospel of Matthew. It tells us what it was that our Lord rode into Jerusalem specifically to endure; and it teaches us something very important about our own journey along the ‘road to triumph’ in His kingdom.
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The scene of our passage is the garden of Gethsemane. Our Lord had enjoyed a final supper with His disciples; and He then brought them with Him to this garden as He awaited the coming of His betrayer Judas. After praying alone to the Father, He returned to find His disciples asleep; and waking them up, He gave the announcement that the whole purpose for which He had ridden into the city in great triumph had now, at last, arrived. He said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand” (Matthew 26:45-46).
The time had come; and Jesus courageously faced the events that would lead directly to His death on the cross for our sins. So, in our passage this morning, Matthew writes;
And while He was still speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, with a great multitude with swords and clubs, came from the chief priests and elders of the people. Now His betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “Whomever I kiss, He is the One; seize Him.” Immediately he went up to Jesus and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” and kissed Him. But Jesus said to him, “Friend, why have you come?” Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and took Him. And suddenly, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear. But Jesus said to him, “Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels? How then could the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen thus?” In that hour Jesus said to the multitudes, “Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me? I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple, and you did not seize Me. But all this was done that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled (Matthew 26:47-56).
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There are several painful and humiliating experiences described for us in this short passage. And have you ever considered why it was that Jesus underwent them before being arrested and going to the cross?
I believe that there are two reasons. One of them is obvious; because it’s repeatedly mentioned in our text. All these things needed to be done—as Jesus Himself said—that the Scriptures might be fulfilled.
Take for example the painful experience of Judas’ betrayal. Jesus had said earlier, during supper, that it would be one of the twelve—one of His close companions—that would betray Him. And this was a fulfillment of Psalm 41:9; where King David wrote, “Even my own familiar friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.”
Or take our Lord’s sharp rebuke to Peter, that he put his sword away. Way back in Isaiah 53—that Old Testament passage that tells us so much about Jesus’ sacrifice for us—the Scriptures promised beforehand that “He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth” (Isaiah 53:7).
Or take the hostility of the crowd itself, that they would come against Him violently with swords and clubs. Even this was in God’s plan. Isaiah 50:6 speaks prophetically of the Lord’s submission to this: “I gave My back to those who struck Me, and My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard; I did not hide My face from shame and spitting.”
It was the fulfillment of these Old Testament promises that made our Lord’s grievous time in the garden necessary. And there’s a lesson for you and me in our Lord’s example. Jesus was more concerned that the words of Scripture be perfectly kept than He was to avoid suffering and humiliation. Stop and think of how many times you and I have dared to disobey or disregarded God’s word in order to avoid our own experiences of suffering and shame. But Jesus—our Lord and Master—never did this. He always set Himself to do the Father’s will; and was willing to suffer at the hands of men rather than to allow one single word of Scripture to fail. How different our lives would be if you and I would follow our Lord’s priority more consistently!
So that’s one reason our Lord suffered these things before going to the cross. It was because every word of Scripture concerning Him must be fulfilled. But I believe there’s another reason; and it’s a reason that should become a cause for great encouragement and hope in our own times of trial. And that is that our Lord wished to illustrate to us the spiritual principle that the times of suffering and humiliation we may endure as His followers leads to ultimate triumph and victory in His kingdom.
We call Jesus’ entry into the city of Jerusalem on that day long ago a “triumphant” one. And we should, because it it truly was. But we’re reminded in this morning’s passage that before the triumph of Jesus’ resurrection came humiliation, and suffering, and death.
You and I are most familiar with the first half of that principle. We live in a fallen world; and we experience humiliation and suffering and death along the way as His followers. But so did He. And He willingly did so in order that we would not fail to see our own temporal experiences of suffering and trial for Him in the light of His ultimate triumph for us.
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Look at this passage again with me; and consider first that our Lord rode into Jerusalem, on the day of that triumphal entry, in order to suffer . . .
1. THE KISS OF THE BETRAYER (vv. 47-50).
Even while Jesus was still waking His disciples up and speaking to them, Judas was making his way to Jesus through the garden area—accompanied by “a great multitude” that had swords and clubs. John, in his Gospel, tells us that it was a “detachment of troops, and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees” (John 18:3). It’s staggering to think of the military force and authoritative officials that were given over to accompany Judas that dark night.
And then comes the most notorious act of betrayal in all of human history. Judas had given a sign to those who were going to arrest Jesus, in order to help identify Him to them. And it would be—of all things—the kiss of a friend. Matthew says, “Immediately he went up to Jesus and said, ‘Greetings, Rabbi!’ and kissed Him.”
But did you know that the kiss wasn’t even necessary? Jesus wasn’t hiding from those sent to arrest Him. The apostle John tells us that Jesus, “knowing all things that would come upon Him, went forward and said to them, ‘Whom are you seeking?'” (John 18:4). He readily identified Himself to them. He gave Himself over willingly to those who would arrest Him and crucify Him.
But please consider how much this betrayal must have broken our Lord’s heart. You can see clues of it in our passage. Notice how Matthew deliberately described Judas as “one of the twelve” (v. 47). Matthew did this in order to highlight the fact that Judas was from among those who were closest to the Lord. We should never forget that Jesus deliberately chose Judas to be one of His close companions—to follow Him, and learn from Him, and behold His miracles—even though He knew that Judas would one day betray Him. Jesus once said to them all, “Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?” (John 6:70).
Judas didn’t call Jesus “Lord” or “Master”; but rather called him “Rabbi”. It’s not a name that demonstrated in Judas any kind of affinity with Jesus’ divine authority, but rather suggested that Judas kept a measure of distance from Him. But notice how Jesus responded. He called Judas “friend”. The word that Jesus used isn’t the ordinary word for “friend”; but one that means “companion” or “associate”. It’s the idea of someone who had an ‘affiliation’ with someone else. And this makes me think back to the painful words of King David in Psalm 55:12-14—words that I believe spoke prophetically of our Lord’s grief over Judas:
For it is not an enemy who reproaches me;
Then I could bear it.
Nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me;
Then I could hide from him.
But it was you, a man my equal,
My companion and my acquaintance.
We took sweet counsel together,
And walked to the house of God in the throng (Psalm 55:12-14).
One of the things that we suffer along the way to the triumphant victory Jesus purchased for us is the grief of the betrayal and loss of friendship of those close to us. Jesus warned us that this would happen. He had said that He didn’t come into this world to bring peace, but a sword. He said that our relationship with Him would set even some of the closest family members against us; “and a man’s enemies will be those of his own household” (Matthew 10:36). Many of us know the truth of this from personal experience. It’s one of the most painful costs we must bear for following Jesus. And Jesus Himself felt it. He Himself experienced the grief of the betrayer’s kiss.
But let’s be sure that we keep that grief in perspective. The grief our Lord felt was just a brief experience during ‘the first half’ of triumph—just as ours also will prove to be.
The resurrection was just around the corner.
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So; that’s one thing our Lord entered into town that day to experience—the suffering of the kiss of the betrayer. Another thing our Lord came to suffer was . . .
2. THE SWORD OF THE DISCIPLE (vv. 51-54).
When Judas kissed Jesus, Jesus said, “Friend, why have you come?”—or, “Friend, do what you came for” (as it is in the New International Version). With that, the crowd laid hands on Jesus and took Him.
And it was then that the most notorious of kisses led to the most awkward of all pieces of swordsmanship! We’re told that “one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.” We’re told in John’s Gospel that the swordsman was Peter; and that the name of the servant was Malchus. And we can be pretty sure that the part of Malchus’ body that Peter intended to sever was not just his ear, but the whole head!
How grievous this must have been to our Lord! How contrary to His own heart Peter’s reckless act of the flesh was! The weapon that our Lord taught us to use in the advancing of His kingdom is not a literal sword, but rather “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesians 6:17). That’s the sword Jesus Himself used in the wilderness against the devil. With each temptation from the devil, Jesus responded with, “It is written . . .” (Matthew 4:4, 7, 10). The literal sword has its legitimate place in this world (see Romans 13:3-4); but that place is not in the hands of Jesus’ followers for the advancement of His kingdom.
And as an aside, just think of how our Lord stands out in this! Just think of all the leaders of false religions and phony philosophies throughout history that have sought to advance their kingdom by means of the sword—or of all their followers who seek to do so today! Think of how many of them would have thought that, if ever there was a time to take up the sword, this would have been it! But our Lord did not! That would have been to operate on the principle of the flesh; and it was not the way His kingdom was to be advanced. It is still not today.
Jesus told Peter, “Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.” In that one statement, Jesus forever forbade the advancement of His kingdom by the use of the sword. Those who have sought to do so in the past have done so in violation of our Lord’s warning. And in Peter’s case, the warning—that all who take the sword will perish by the sword—have been been very literally fulfilled; because the man he had struck with the sword was the servant of the high priest. Luke tells us that Jesus touched the servant’s ear and healed it (Luke 22:51); and I suggest that this more than an act of mercy to the servant. It was an act of mercy to Peter; because it was an act of foolish rashness that would have surely cost Peter his life!
Jesus made it clear to Peter that such violence wasn’t necessary at all. Jesus said that if He had wanted to, He could right then have asked the Father; and the Father would have provided “more than twelve legions of angels”. We’re told in Scripture that one angel alone killed 185,000 Assyrian solders overnight (Isaiah 37:36). And a legion usually consisted of anywhere from 3,000 to 6,000 soldiers! Jesus could have called forth over twelve of such legions of angels to come to His aid—one for each of them, and a few extra beside! Frankly, they would have been more than sufficient to wipe all other human beings off of planet earth . . . if that was what the Lord wished. But Jesus asked, “How then could the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be thus?” (v. 54).
So here’s something else that the Lord had to suffer—the fleshly efforts of His own disciples. They didn’t understand that His kingdom would be advanced by spiritual means; and thus, they resorted to the flesh and drew out the sword. What’s more, they didn’t understand His obedience to the Scriptures; and so sought to protect Him from the sacrifice He must make on the cross.
And given the numbers of times our Lord’s reckless followers have made the same sorts of mistake of resorting to fleshly principles throughout the centuries, it’s truly amazing that the church has endured on earth as long as it has! It’s horrifying to think of the numbers of times we must have dishonored our Lord and His cause by not staying true to His methods and His manner—not only grieving Him in this way, but also hurting one another!
But let’s keep this in perspective too. As imperfect as we are as His followers, He still wins in the end.
The triumph of the resurrection was only a few days away.
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So then; Jesus rode into town that day to suffer the kiss of the betrayer, and the sword of the disciple. Finally, we see that He came to suffer . . .
3. THE RAGE OF THE WICKED (vv. 55-56).
Those who came to arrest Him came with what they thought was ‘overwhelming force’. But Jesus turned from rebuking Peter to rebuke them. He said, “Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me?”
The word translated “robber” here isn’t the word ordinarily used for someone who’s merely a thief. This is a word that refers to someone who would lead a violent rebellion. It was the word that was used to describe Barabbas—the man that Pilate released in Jesus’ place (John 18:40), who had been arrested “for a certain rebellion made in the city, and for murder” (Luke 23:19). And this multitude of troops and officials came to Jesus with their swords and clubs—as if He were such a dangerous person to them.
And yet, He clearly was no such threat to them. He said, “I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple, and you did not seize Me.” The most dangerous thing He had done was to welcome the blind and the lame to Himself in the temple, so that He could heal them there. The officials certainly wouldn’t have come to Him with swords and clubs when He was doing that!
As He said, “But all this was done that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled” (v. 56a). Among those Scriptures was, no doubt, Zechariah 13:7; which says, “Strike the Shepherd and the sheep will be scattered” (see also Matthew 26:31); because we next read, “Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled.”
So among the other things that our Lord suffered that night was this; that the ungodly people of this world—and the power of darkness that operated in them (Luke 22:53)—poured out its rage on Him excessively. They treated Him as a dangerous criminal—as a rebel to be restrained and destroyed.
And this also is one of the things that we suffer along the way as His followers. Jesus warned;
“If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. He who hates Me hates My Father also. If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father. But this happened that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law, ‘They hated Me without a cause'” (John 15:18-25).
But if we must suffer misunderstanding, and false accusations, or even persecution for His name’s sake, let’s keep even this in perspective. Jesus Himself tasted of it. And even at it’s worst, it has been proven—by our Lord’s own experience—to only a part of the first half of the hard road to triumph. We will soon reach the journey’s end, and share together in the glory.
The ultimate triumph—secured forever for us by the resurrection of Jesus from the dead—is soon to come.
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And so; on this Palm Sunday, let’s remember what our Lord wished to teach us from His own experience. He entered into the city on that day long ago in what truly was a “triumphal entry”. But before the triumph came the trials. We live in a fallen world; and we will suffer those trials too. They may come in the form of the kiss of the betrayer, or the sword of a disciple, or the rage of the wicked. But they will come upon us just as they came upon Him.
Let’s keep those times of trial in perspective—that those brief times of suffering and humiliation we may endure as His followers will eventually give way to the victory in His kingdom that He secured for us at His resurrection.