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[0:00] This is the First Mustang Pulpit Podcast, a podcast of the weekly preaching and teaching at First Mustang.! Thank you for joining us. Let me invite you to open your Bible back to Mark chapter 11.

[0:19] ! What we know as the Passion Week.

[0:34] Passion is a word that comes from the Latin meaning suffering. And if you just look at the Gospel of Mark for just a moment, you notice we've finished ten chapters of our verse-by-verse study here.

[0:48] So Mark devotes ten chapters to three and a half years in the life of Jesus. And then he'll devote six chapters to the final week.

[1:03] So much of the Gospels give us detail on this climactic final week in his life leading up to his crucifixion and resurrection.

[1:17] Jesus is now at the end of this journey. It's taken about nine months. He went through Galilee, through Samaria, through Perea, and now Judea.

[1:28] And he's going to end up here at Jerusalem at Passover. There is significant tension in the air.

[1:40] In fact, it is really unlike anything they've seen before. This is a fever pitch of anticipation.

[1:54] Huge crowds are everywhere. The city swells as massive amounts of people have come into town. All the while, Jesus has been triumphantly walking up to Jerusalem.

[2:13] Even though he knows people have been seeking to kill him, the Gospels tell us the detail that Jesus leads the way. Behind him is a throng of people, his apostles, other followers, those who have joined with them on the way up to Jerusalem.

[2:34] But Jesus leads the way. There have been so many conversations he has had that are leading up to this point. So many claims, so many miracles, so much of his teaching and preaching has prepared for this exact moment.

[2:53] The religious leaders, however, see this as the time they must get rid of him. As the city swells, so does the drama.

[3:06] It would not be possible to even adequately or fully explain all of how things are unfolding. But it would help us to remember that chronologically in the life of Jesus, about six or eight weeks ago, something happened.

[3:26] It was the final straw for his opponents. Just about six or eight weeks ago, Jesus came to Bethany, just beyond Jerusalem.

[3:41] And he raised Lazarus. And when that happened, the Pharisees said, that's it.

[3:55] He must die. John 11 records it this way. When he had said this, Jesus called out in a loud voice, Lazarus, come out.

[4:07] And the dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, take off the grave clothes and let him go.

[4:18] Therefore, many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary and had seen what Jesus did believed in him. But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.

[4:32] Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin. What are we accomplishing, they asked. Here is this man performing many signs.

[4:44] If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him. And then the Romans will come and take away both our temple and our nation.

[4:54] So from that day on, they plotted to take his life. That was six to eight weeks ago. Jesus is back in town.

[5:09] Passover approaching. People are streaming into the city. Jesus triumphantly walking up to Jerusalem, leading the way.

[5:24] His opponents for the last six to eight weeks have said we've got to catch him and kill him. John 12 adds this detail.

[5:34] When the large crowd of the Jews learned that Jesus was there, they came, not only on account of him, but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. So the chief priests made plans to put Lazarus to death as well, because on account of him, many of the Jews were going away and believing in Jesus.

[5:57] When you hear about a triumphal entry, and you hear about people worshiping Jesus, you have this picture in your mind of this great joyful scene.

[6:08] But understand, that great joyful scene to the religious leaders of the day is a nightmare. Jesus has raised Lazarus from the dead, and because of it, many people were believing in him.

[6:25] So the religious leaders said, we have got to kill Jesus. And if Lazarus is the reason people are believing in Jesus, let's get him and kill him too. So this time of a triumphal entry is also a time where people are trying to make it a murder scene.

[6:48] As we walk through these 11 verses, setting the stage to enter into this Passion Week, look first at a public declaration. It's verses 1 to 7.

[7:00] It's a public declaration. Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples.

[7:14] Just a reminder here, Jesus crossed the Jordan near Jericho. He went through Jericho. He heals two blind men, one of them named Bartimaeus that we just studied.

[7:24] He has his encounter with Zacchaeus, and now he ascends to Jerusalem. Why was he going to Jerusalem? Let me just remind you, go back to chapter 10, verse 32.

[7:39] We know exactly why he was going. Mark 10, 32. And they were on the road going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them, and they were amazed.

[7:51] And those who followed were afraid, and taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him, saying, See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man, that's Jesus, will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles, and they will mock him and spit on him and flog him and kill him, and after three days he will rise.

[8:15] Now, whatever people believed about what Jesus said, this much was certain. They were convinced something was about to go down.

[8:29] Whether or not somebody believed that he would really be captured and really be killed, whether or not somebody believed that if he was killed, he was really going to rise again, whether or not people believed that he was going to be able to escape it, whether or not people believed he was the Messiah, whether or not he was out of his mind.

[8:47] Whatever you believed, this much was very clear. Something climactic is about to take place. And in verse 2, he said, Go to the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find a colt tied on which no one has ever sat.

[9:06] Untie it and bring it. Just a note, when they needed an animal for priestly service, they used one that had not previously been used. You see that in Numbers 19, Deuteronomy 21, 1 Samuel 6.

[9:23] If anyone says to you, why are you doing this? Say, the Lord has need of it, and we'll send it back here immediately. And they went away and found a colt tied to the door outside in the street, and they untied it.

[9:38] And some of those standing there said to them, what are you doing untying the colt? And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let him go.

[9:51] Now what is happening here is not merely details of the event. This is also the fulfillment of prophecy made 500 years ago.

[10:06] Zechariah 9, verse 9, Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you, righteous and having salvation as he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

[10:23] Jesus here is identifying himself with the royal line of David. The donkey was the animal regarded as a royal animal for and during David's reign.

[10:35] Matthew 21 adds, verse 4 and 5, that this event is fulfilling those words of Zechariah. This is not merely just a detail. This is the fulfillment of prophecy.

[10:47] This is alerting everybody that what was spoken of 500 years ago, here it is. For five centuries, you've heard the prophecy.

[10:59] It's been told. It's been recited. It's been passed down. For 500 years, you've heard about this. Here it is. And the air is so thick with tension.

[11:17] They brought the colt to Jesus, verse 7 says, and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it.

[11:28] This is a public declaration that Jesus is Messiah. The prophet spoke of him.

[11:43] The Old Testament's been pointing toward him. Everything that's been written is summed up in him. All the preaching, all the miracles have all been authenticating and validating.

[12:02] It is Christ who is Messiah. He has just said, we are going to Jerusalem, and there I'm going to lay down my life, but I will rise again.

[12:20] In a very public way now, the hour has come, and Jesus says, I am Messiah, and it is publicly declared.

[12:31] Many times before in his life, Jesus has done a miracle and said, don't tell anybody. Jesus has done something and said, don't tell anybody. But now, it is very public.

[12:45] It's for everybody to see. He has taught it. He has shown it. He has lived it. He has demonstrated it. He has done healings to verify it, and now, he is the fulfillment of the prophecy, and he publicly declares he is Messiah, and his time has come.

[13:06] Now, because of that, that leads secondly to what we'll call a passionate expectation. A passionate expectation. Verse 8, many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields.

[13:26] This was a custom to show submission to authority. This goes as far back as 2 Kings 9. You can read about this. John 12 adds, it was palm branches that were being used.

[13:40] They put their coats on the colt to provide a makeshift saddle because kings didn't ride bareback. Others would take their coats and throw them down on the ground to make a kind of royal carpet for Jesus to ride on.

[13:59] The palm branches here are a symbol of victory and a symbol of joy. This is a joyful occasion. This enthusiasm has now reached a fever pitch.

[14:13] Here's Jesus marching into town, riding into town triumphantly with people behind him. He's out in front, not buried in the middle. His opponents looking for him, trying to kill him.

[14:25] Six to eight weeks, they've been wanting to put him to death. Yet Jesus, not hiding, out in front has people waving palm branches, worshiping him and praising him.

[14:39] They are saying, Hosanna, verse 9 says, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna means save now. The nation is about to celebrate Passover, which commemorates the Lord's miraculous deliverance of his people out of Egyptian bondage.

[15:01] They're about to celebrate the fact that God miraculously delivered his people. And here comes Jesus triumphantly riding into town with people waving palm branches, a symbol of joy and hope and victory and worshiping, saying, save now!

[15:21] Save now! What better time than now when they have come to commemorate how God delivered them from oppression. This is, in their mind, the perfect time for Messiah to deliver them into their ultimate, final freedom.

[15:39] They're quoting Psalm 118, verse 26. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Blessed is the coming of our father, David, Hosanna in the highest.

[15:54] They make the connection with Jesus back to David. Here's the problem. The people have this expectation of what Messiah will do, but their expectation is that Jesus will give them what they want rather than what they need.

[16:25] What the people need is a Savior. And that's what Jesus is going to provide for them. What the people want is simply a ruler to lead them in to their earthly dreams.

[16:46] They still don't want a suffering servant. They want a ruling, triumphant, conquering, earthly king. The people, though they are saying the right things and even quoting from Scripture, still only have eyes to see what they want to see.

[17:08] They're all about Jesus Messiah, if that means here comes the golden age, if that means here comes our political freedom, if that means here comes our economic power, if that means we throw off the oppression of Rome.

[17:22] They're all for it, but they still have no interest in talking about their sin and repentance and their need for salvation. the message of judgment and atonement still something their ears don't care to hear.

[17:41] The people understood, it's been said, the majesty of his mission, but not the humility of his purpose. Jesus rides in a town and is a majestic moment, but it's also a humble moment because he is the suffering servant, the lamb about to be slain.

[18:11] But even though Jesus has been very clear about this, the crowd is not interested in a suffering servant.

[18:24] They just want the conquering king. They're not interested in the lamb to be slain. They just want the roaring lion.

[18:38] Even the apostles don't really understand what's going on. John 12 verse 16 says this, his disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.

[18:55] It's after the resurrection, it's after the empty tomb that the apostles look back and finally figure it all out. Now, while this scene happens, you've got people laying down their coats as a saddle, people laying down their coats as a kind of red carpet, so to speak.

[19:17] You've got people waving palm branches. You've got people saying, save now, save now, deliver us, deliver us. And this worship is taking place.

[19:28] Luke tells us the Pharisees say, put an end to this. Luke 19, verse 39, some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, teacher, rebuke your disciples.

[19:42] Tell them to stop saying your Messiah. Don't you understand, Jesus, the crowd is claiming you to be the very son of God.

[19:53] Tell them to stop that. Jesus answers, verse 40, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.

[20:09] Teacher, rebuke your disciples, they say. Why? Because they count all of this as blasphemy. the religious leaders don't take Jesus to be who he says he is.

[20:28] They take all of this to be a lie. So, they say, stop. And Jesus says, if they stop, these stones will cry out.

[20:39] He uses a word that literally means to scream. If I want to raise up worshipers from the stones, I'll have the stones screaming the truth. You've got this public declaration of Jesus writing in.

[20:53] You've got this passionate expectation of the people seeing Jesus writing. And what could be a better time in their mind than for Jesus to write in right here at this time, right at Passover, and do what they've always wanted and hoped he would do.

[21:10] And that leads to a third thing. And things will change quickly. Thirdly, in verse 11, we see a personal meditation.

[21:24] A personal meditation. Verse 11, and he entered Jerusalem, and he went into the temple.

[21:39] Now just stop for just a minute. Jesus is the king. When a king comes to town, where would you suspect a king would go?

[21:55] you'd probably think, well, the king would go to the palace. That's not where Jesus goes. He entered Jerusalem, and he went into the temple.

[22:13] The temple meaning the full, large area. We'll look in detail of what that would be like next week, but he goes into the full, it's a very large area.

[22:28] Hundreds of thousands of people would fit there. And he takes it in. He entered Jerusalem, and he went into the temple.

[22:45] Look at the next phrase. and when he had looked around at everything, he takes it all in.

[23:00] Now, it's late in the evening, the end of the verse tells us, so things are winding down. But what do we know is happening at the temple?

[23:14] Well, people are coming in for sacrifice. when you come in for sacrifice, you've got a couple of options. You can bring your own animal for sacrifice.

[23:25] That's got a couple of problems with it. One, is you've got to manage that animal on the journey. That's a problem. Two, when you get there, that animal has to be inspected.

[23:39] And if the animal doesn't pass inspection, then you have to buy a new animal for sacrifice. Just so happens, good news, they have animals for you.

[23:50] Bad news, you're going to pay about 10 to 15 times what you should. Now, the more they reject your animal and sell you their animal, the richer they get.

[24:08] What do you think those inspections look like? money. Not only that, but you have money changing happening. You've got all these different kinds of coins and currency, and there are only a couple of kinds of coins that could be used, and so you need to exchange your currency for their currency.

[24:28] Good news, we've got money changers here to do that. But you're going to pay a pretty penny to make that exchange. And all of this, the cheating of people, the money changing, the cheating of people on selling for these extraordinary prices, these animals for sacrifice, this is going on all over the place.

[24:57] This is the temple grounds turned into the state fairgrounds with just animals and people and the sound of exchanging and buying and the noise of animals, and the whole thing has just become a charade where the religious leaders get filthy rich.

[25:28] That's why Jesus went to the temple. This is his domain. this is his place.

[25:43] This is his father's house. And they have made his father's house a den of thieves.

[25:56] And Jesus rides in town to the temple. And only Mark gives us this detail.

[26:07] And it seems at first almost insignificant until you put all the pieces together. When he had looked around at everything, he scouts the place.

[26:26] things. Now it's late, so he's about to go home for the night to Bethany. But he's coming back tomorrow.

[26:42] And you know what he's going to do tomorrow? He's going to cleanse that temple. people. But first, he looks around.

[26:56] He takes it in. He watches. He observes. He knows what he's going to do tomorrow.

[27:11] He's scouting. He's preparing. He's gone to the domain of his father's house.

[27:24] And there at the temple, he sees the full display of just how worldly they've all become.

[27:42] I don't know what the look looked like when it says he looked around.

[27:56] But can you even begin to imagine what that was? When he looked and saw religious leaders stealing and robbing.

[28:11] People who are supposed to be shepherds who will become thieves. People who are supposed to be protectors that are now preying on the people.

[28:28] And while the whole thing is winding down that evening, he just watches. He sees it all.

[28:42] He takes it in and he knows I'm coming back tomorrow and I'm shutting this down.

[29:00] And you've got a man named Annas, the former high priest, still the most powerful religious man in the land. Annas and his men are the ones making all the money from this.

[29:15] and they're just getting filthy rich. And Jesus is going to come and close up shop.

[29:30] And these people who already want him dead will be pushed to their breaking point. He went out to Bethany with the twelve as it was already late.

[29:55] I wonder what kind of king you're looking for today. What kind of God are you seeking?

[30:08] Is your heart surrendered to the king of all kings? Or could it be that like the people you are still trying to worship a God of your own creation and of your own imagination?

[30:26] There was so much zeal and so much noise, so much of what seemed to be worshipped, but the truth is what's really happening is a whole lot of people caught up in the moment hoping Jesus will do for them what they really want him to do.

[30:49] It won't last, of course. It won't last. It'll just be a few nights from now and the sound of the crowd that echoes through the air water.

[31:06] Or the screams, crucify him. Crucify him. When people don't get what they want from God, they'll move on to find a different one.

[31:25] That's what the unconverted heart does. it could be even this morning that you find yourself trying to make a deal with God.

[31:43] You'll go to church for a little bit, see how that works out. Read my Bible for a little bit, see how that works out. Pray a little bit, see if I get everything I want.

[31:57] But here's the good news of the gospel. Jesus didn't come to give you what you want. He came to give you what you need. You need a Savior.

[32:14] You need someone to pay for your sin. You need someone to lay down their life that's a perfect sacrifice so that you, a sinner, could have your sin paid for and be given forgiveness and everlasting life.

[32:37] And I wonder if Jesus were to, so to speak, ride in today and look around at your life like he did the temple, what would he see?

[32:51] if today Jesus just walked up to where you are like he did the temple and if he just looked around at your life like he did that evening, if he just looked at how you live and what you say and how you speak and where you go and what you think about, what you look at, how you treat your spouse, how you spend your time, what would he see?

[33:34] Would he see evidence that your heart is a temple? Would he see evidence that your heart is his home?

[33:47] Or would it be that he would see a lot of the same things he saw that evening when he wrote in? Worldliness, selfishness, sinfulness.

[34:11] Would he need to come into your life and cleanse the temple of your soul? Well, here's the good news.

[34:25] The good news is that Jesus did lay down his life as a payment for sin. And the good news is that he has paid the price for us. God is that we who were sinners could be saved.

[34:40] And if you've never known him as your Lord and Savior, the good news is that today can be the day that you go from spiritual death to spiritual life. This king, the Lord Jesus Christ, laid down his life as a payment for our sin.

[34:58] that any who believe in his name would receive everlasting life. Would you this day declare in your heart your need for a Savior and cry out to the Lord Jesus to save you?

[35:18] Would you this day, even this moment, say, Lord Jesus, I'm a sinner. I'm a I'm a I'm a I'm a I'm a sinner.

[35:29] And I know that I've done wrong. And I trust in you, and I believe in you, and I'm asking you to save me. And I'm asking you to bring salvation to my soul.

[35:45] That's what you need. And if you're a Christian, then if he were to look over your life and look over your heart, and you fear, that he may be displeased with what he would find, would you just be reminded today that our God is a God of grace?

[36:07] He's a God of forgiveness. He's the God of a new start. He's a God of mercy. And if today your life looks a whole lot more like the world, world, then it should.

[36:29] Ask him in grace through the work of the Holy Spirit to wash you clean. Confess your sin. Repent of what you've done that you know should not be taking place in your life.

[36:46] faith. And call upon the name of the Lord as a believer to once again just wash you and cleanse you as you repent and confess your sin.

[37:02] It is a wonderful thing when a Christian continues to live in repentance and continues to seek the face of the Lord so their lives remain pure and holy as they should so that when people see us they see an accurate depiction of what it means to be changed by the grace of Jesus Christ.

[37:34] If the Lord were to ride in and look at your life today what would he find? and then would you be encouraged to know that for all this sin that may break your heart and for all the disobedience that may shame you for those sins he died.

[38:03] that's why he's there to give up his life to lay down his life as a ransom that's why he's there he's going to die but not because his opponents are too strong he's going to die because his grace is that deep and he has come for this purpose to lay down his life that you could be saved and there's never been a time in your life where you've done that let this be the day this very day where you call upon his name and if you are a believer let this be the day where you once again ask the

[39:08] Lord to forgive you and restore to you the joy of your salvation. Now next week Lord willing verse 15 you're going to see the severity of Christ verse 15 they came to Jerusalem and he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple and overturned the tables of the money changers you're going to see the severity of Christ and this day if you reject him you'll experience that too one day but you don't have to because his grace and mercy is offered Jesus rode in the town he went to the temple and he looked around as the

[40:18]  Holy Spirit does that for you today cling to his grace and thank him for his mercy and make sure that your life reflects the one we worship so you you you