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[0:00] Zechariah 9, verse 9. Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion. Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem. Behold, thy king cometh unto thee.

[0:11] He is just and having salvation. Lowly and riding upon an ass and upon a coat that fall upon us. And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem.

[0:23] And the battle boy shall be cut off and he shall speak peace unto the heathen. And his dominion shall be from sea even to sea and from the river even to the ends of the earth.

[0:35] As for thee also, by the blood of thy cabinet I have set forth thy prisoners out of the pit wherein there is no water. Turn you to the stronghold, ye prisoners of hope.

[0:46] Even today do I declare that I will render double unto thee. When I have bent Judah for me, filled the bowl with Ephraim and raised up by sandals, Zion, against thy sand, O Greece, and made thee as the sword of a mighty man.

[1:02] Greece did, I think, in the sense that it's used in the New Testament. The gospel is for the Jews, first and also to the Greeks. The Greeks can be typical of the whole non-Jewish world beyond.

[1:13] And the Lord shall be seen over them, and his arrows shall go forth as the lightning. And the Lord God shall blow the trumpets, and shall go with firearms of the south.

[1:24] The Lord of hosts shall defend them, and they shall devour and subdue with sling stones. And they shall drink and make a noise as through wine. And they shall be filled like bowls, and as the corners of the altar.

[1:38] And the Lord their God shall save them in that day as the flock of his people. For they shall be as the stones of a crown, lifted up as an ensign upon his land. For how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty.

[1:53] Corn shall make the young men cheerful, and new wine the maids. And then in Matthew 21, reading a few verses from the beginning of that chapter.

[2:07] And when he do now unto Jerusalem, and we are come to this stage, this stage, I suppose is the pronunciation, and to the mount of Olom, then sent Jesus to disciples, saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway you shall find an askai, and a coat with her.

[2:27] Loose them, and bring them unto me. And if any man say unto you, you shall say the Lord has need of them. And straightway he will send them. That means to me as if the message, of course, was beside Bethany.

[2:41] And that area, I don't know, knew very well indeed, and his close friends, Lazarus, Martha, and Mary, lived there. And it sounds to me as if these disciples were people that he knew, and who as soon as they heard the Lord in need of them, would willingly send the animals.

[3:01] I don't think it was just a display of sovereignty. He could have done that if he wished, but I think it was more than that. I think that he had a good strength of discipleship in the Bethany area. And the disciples went, verse 6, and did as Jesus commanded them, and brought the earth and the coat, and put on them their clothes, and they set them thereon.

[3:22] And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way. Others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way. And the multitude that went before and that followed cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David.

[3:36] Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest. And when he was coming into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this?

[3:48] And the multitude said, This is Jesus, the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee. And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold, and bought in the temple, and overthrew the table to the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, and said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called a house of fear, but here made it a den of thieves.

[4:12] And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them. And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the son of David, who were sore and distressed, and said unto him, Hear us now what we say, Jesus said unto them, Yea, have ye never read, out of the mouths of babes and sacklings, thou hast perfected praise.

[4:40] May the Lord bless us. And these readings from his word. Let us sing now in Psalm number 22, and from verse 26, to the end of the psalm, Psalm 22, verse 26, to the end, and the tune is victorious.

[4:57] The meek shall eat, and shall be filled, they also pray, shall give, and to the Lord, and do them seek, your heart shall ever live, all ends of the earth, remember shall, and turn the Lord unto, all kindreds of the nations, to him shall homage you, because the kingdom to the Lord, as appertained as his, likewise among the nations, the governor he is.

[5:23] That's from Psalm 22, 26, to the end, to God's praise, and the tune victorious. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[5:34] Amen. Amen.

[6:30] Amen. Amen.

[7:30] Amen. Amen.

[8:01] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Can we turn to Zechariah, the prophecy of Zechariah, chapter 9, and read again verse 9, Zechariah 9, verse 9, where the prophet says, Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion, shout, O daughter of Jerusalem, behold, thy king cometh unto thee, he is just, and having salvation, lowly, and riding upon a naft, and upon a coat, the foe of a naft.

[8:39] Now as we saw in reading Matthew 21, or part of 21, this prophecy concerning the Messiah, was fulfilled in our Lord's riding in triumph into Jerusalem, on a young naft, five days before his death.

[8:59] You could perhaps make a note in the passing, that not insignificantly, the Passover fell on the 14th day of the month, and the day of the triumphal entry into Jerusalem was the 10th day of the month.

[9:21] And on that particular day, according to Jewish law, the Passover lamb, which was to be slain, and its blood sprinkled on the 14th day, was taken, and set aside, quite ceremonially, for the Passover feast.

[9:38] feast. So that, on what we see happening, the symbol being fulfilled in the reality, is that on that very day, the 10th day, the day that Jesus rode in an aft into Jerusalem, the Lord Jesus Christ, our New Testament Passover lamb, the lamb of God, who was to be sacrificed for our sins, was publicly shown, publicly designated, as the final, the last of all, Passover lamb.

[10:10] And so the period, to our Lord's passion, his ultimate hour of suffering unto death, at Calvary, was this procession, into Jerusalem, where he rode, on the Asa's Cove.

[10:27] Now all four Gospels, some more fully, than the others, record, this taking place, of our Lord's triumphal entry, into Jerusalem, and the singing of the multitudes, in Jesus' honour, Hosanna to the son of David, blessed is he that cometh, in the name of the Lord, Hosanna in the highest.

[10:50] And John's Gospel adds, as John often does, a little explanatory comment, John says, as it is written, he means in the Old Testament, fear not, daughter of Zion, behold thy king cometh, sitting on an Asa's coat, and of course the reference is to, the passage before us, in Zechariah chapter 9.

[11:12] So, that's what the prophet, Zechariah, said, about the coming Christ. Now, let's ask you a question, what did the prophet mean, by what he said?

[11:23] this talk about, Christ, the king, of Zion, coming on Anasas' coat. They address this to the, daughter of Zion, the daughter of Jerusalem.

[11:35] this means that the prophet Zechariah, in God's name, is inviting his people, to welcome, with praise and rejoicing, the coming of the Messiah.

[11:47] Now, in the Bible, we find Zion, originally referred to the citadel, at Jerusalem, or maybe the hill, on which the citadel stood, on which the earliest, city of David stood.

[12:03] But, in Hebrew song, and poetry, the word Zion, came to refer, to the city itself, and even to the people, the people, of God.

[12:15] And, here you've got, a collective noun, the daughter of Zion, referring, to the people of Jerusalem, as a whole. So, they address this to the, the people of Jerusalem, as a whole, that the king is coming, that he is just, that he has salvation, that he is glory, that he is going to ride, upon a nas, and upon a col, the col of a nas.

[12:35] Thy king, cameth, and to the, that's an interesting expression, thy king, it's as if, it is as if the Jews, have never had a king before.

[12:47] But it's not unlike, for example, what Isaiah says, behold my servant, whom I uphold. Again, you see, it's as if, God had never had any servant, in Israel before.

[13:01] What it means, that this is the servant, or the king, that surpasses all, servants and kings. It's a king, who will surpass, all others, in dignity, and service.

[13:16] Now, the kings of David's line, very specially, they were, they were, symbolic, they were, they were prophetic, of Christ. And they prepared, the way for Christ, who was to be born, of the royal house of David.

[13:32] In Isaiah 9 and 7, we read, he shall sit, on the throne, of David forever. You remember, the words of the, the angel to Mary, in Luke 1, 32, 33, telling what the, our son was going to be like.

[13:47] Well, he said, the angel, he shall be great, and he shall be called, the son of the highest. And the Lord God, shall give unto him, the throne, of his father David.

[13:58] There's that, kingly notion again. And he shall reign, over the house of Jacob, forever. And of his kingdom, there shall be no end. All that was said, about Jesus of Nazareth.

[14:11] Now, the, the Jews, were far from objecting, to, the Messiah, being represented, as a king. And the, truth is, that they, they gloried, in the kingly colonies, of the predicted Messiah.

[14:25] Because, in, in a king, with the, political, power, they saw, the hope of their, political deliverance, from Rome, or any other, secular nation, that would threaten their peace.

[14:40] But you see, they weren't prepared, for a lowly king, or one, whose kingdom, was not of this world. It's very interesting, that, that chapter, in Matthew 21, Jesus came into the city.

[14:55] Now, what was the first thing he did? He went and, and flung the money changers, out of the, the temple. His kingdom, was not of this world. And they, they had turned, God's house, into a den of robbers.

[15:09] I mean, they were, not only were they money changers, but they were, they were, they were, they were looking the people, they were, they were piling on the interest charges. It was, it was a real racket, in the house of God.

[15:21] But our Lord was, was indicating, that his king, he came on a, on an ass, the coat, the foal of an ass, not, not on a war horse.

[15:32] And one of the first things he did, was, was to clear out, the, the money changers, these crooks, from the temple of God. His kingdom, was not of this world. And Jews, were not prepared.

[15:45] They, they were delighted, that they were going to get, a king for the Messiah. But they were not prepared, for a lowly king, or one whose kingdom, was not of this world. And of course, these are, our Lord's own words.

[15:57] My kingdom is not, of this world. He reminded Peter of that. He said, if I wanted to, then I could, send for 12 legions of angels. That's not who my kingdom is. How shall the scripture, be fulfilled, that, that, that salvation, must come in this way, by my surrendering myself, to the Jews, and to the Romans.

[16:17] So, the Jews were not prepared, for a kingdom, the messianic kingdom, to come in terms, of earthly, of the heavenly, qualities.

[16:30] They were looking for something, that would be, represent military, earthly, military might. Now, what we find, as we go through, the history of our Lord's, sufferings, and death, and then his eventual, exaltation, is that, he received a scepter, in heaven.

[16:50] Not only was it, his kingdom, not of earth, in that the battles, weren't to be, fought in earthly terms, you know, with war horses, and, and, and, the military regalia, and all the rest of it, and military equipment, but, he received the, the scepter, of, representing his kingship, in heaven.

[17:08] It's in heaven, that we read of him, being declared, to be the king of kings, and lord of lords. You don't, hear that declaration, made here on earth. He, ascends up on high, and, and the, the Bible writers tell us, that they, all things, are put under his feet.

[17:28] Well, of course, the point is, that, first there must come, the cross for Christ, and after that, the crown. Of course, Jesus by nature, in his divine nature, by virtue, has been an eternal son of God.

[17:41] He was the king. The king, eternally, mortal, and invisible, and as the, the, the, the great, the fathers of the church, said in their creed, he didn't cease, to be what he, what he was.

[17:56] He couldn't cease, to be the son of God. He was inherently, and eternally, the son of God, but they added, he became, what he was not. He veiled his glory, in the garments, of his human nature, in his, state of humiliation, during the days of his friend.

[18:12] So yes, indeed, Christ, the, the eternal son of God, is inherently king, and king of kings. And, and more than that, Jesus was born, in his, in respect of his humanity, of royal lineage.

[18:25] He was born of the house of David. He wasn't, he wasn't a usurper, to a kingly title. But strictly speaking, when you look at the, the way the Bible speaks, about the, Christ's, being given mediatorial, eh, kingship, or reign, strictly speaking, his mediatorial reign, did not begin, until, having finished, the work of redemption, given by, to him, by the father, to do on earth, he rose from the dead, and ascended, into heaven, and there he received, the invitation, sit now at my right hand, until I make, thy foes, thy footstool.

[19:04] Eh, but his kingdom, eh, was not, of this earth, and, and that was very, eh, strikingly, eh, symbolized, by his, riding, upon an ass, and upon a coat, the foe, of an ass.

[19:19] Now, the prophet also, says certain things, eh, about the coming king's, character, and the coming king's, administration. First of all, he is just, or, or he is righteous.

[19:32] That's the very first thing he says. Now, that was true of the, the Messiah personally, it was true of Christ, personally, that he was just, and righteous. But it's also true, of his administration.

[19:45] And, I couldn't do better, I think, than refer you to Isaiah, chapter 11, verses 3 to 5, where this point is brought out, that the, Messiah's kingdom, is a righteous kingdom. He shall not judge, after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove, after the hearing of his ears, but with righteousness, shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity, for the meek of the earth.

[20:08] And he shall smite the earth, with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips, shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness, shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness, the girdle of his wings.

[20:19] In that chapter, in Matthew, Matthew 21, where we read that, he cleared out the money changers, the people that were running that racket. Now, they had no time, for people that hadn't got the, pound notes.

[20:33] That's the only people who read this, they did. Notice in that 21st chapter, and as soon as the temple was paired with these people, the sick, and the lame, and the maim came in. It would have been no use for these people to come into the temple before, they would have been sent about their business.

[20:48] They would have said, have you got a fiver? If you've got a fiver, then we'll do something for you. But if they had no money, then they weren't welcome. But Jesus cleared out the money changers, and as soon as they were cleared, we're told that the lame, and the sick, and others who were poor, and he came to Jesus, and he healed them all.

[21:06] That's the kingdom of righteousness coming with power. With righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the air.

[21:18] In Peter, we're talking about this expression, the justness of Christ's character and administration. You remember that Peter in his sermon at Pentecost charged the Jews with having denied the holy one and the just.

[21:36] The greatness of their crime lay in this, that they denied the just one. Christ's character was sinless perfection, and of course that was the basis of his reconciling work.

[21:52] He's the Lord of righteousness. A lamb without spot and without blemish. I think there's another point when we're talking about these money changers.

[22:03] That represented a very earthly kingdom, and you wouldn't get a hate fee there unless you had a hate fee to give. If you had money, they would welcome you. But you see, the kingdom of the gospel is a righteous kingdom.

[22:15] That is to say, it's an unbribable kingdom. You don't get the benefits, as tends to be the case with human kingdoms, because you're in the know, or because you have the way with all, or because you've got pull, or influence, or because you've got a hold over somebody.

[22:34] That's not how you get the gospel benefits, thank God. They're free. The benefits of redemption are totally and utterly free to all who come simply pleading their sin, pleading their unworthiness, and pleading their needs.

[22:49] That's what Jesus meant when he said, these things are hid. They're concealed, they're veiled from the wise and prudent, but they're revealed unto babes, come unto me, all you who labor, and a heavy laden and I will give you rest.

[23:05] I think then again we could say this, that the just one, that expression is applied, that attribute is applied to Christ, that name is given to Christ, because his word is absolutely trustworthy.

[23:20] He's righteous in his promises. And of course we know that the hope of Christian believers rests solidly on the promises of the gospel. They are ye, and amen in Christ Jesus.

[23:32] He's absolutely trustworthy. He's just in that sense. Remember how John says that if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just. There's that word again.

[23:43] You can rely on him. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

[23:56] Can we miss this point again? The just one, Christ's own character, which was cast in the shape of goodness and truth and impartiality and righteousness, was what attracted men in the days of his flesh.

[24:12] Why did they, why, you know, nature of horrors of aphiom and all that, but why was it that into the temple when these crooks had been thrown out came all these poor people and these sick people to Jesus because they knew that here was one who was interested, genuinely interested in their case.

[24:31] One who, who did everything that he did with equity and justice. Men were attracted to Jesus by his character.

[24:42] There was no graft in his way of dealing with men. He had a real, a genuine interest in the needs of all. He was interested in equity. He went about doing good.

[24:56] And of course, he said that the same characteristics would be expected in his followers and in his followers these characteristics would be effective under God in drawing others to the gospel.

[25:07] They shall see your good works. It doesn't say that they shall hear your devout words or your Christian words but they shall, no doubt that's important, but this message is there they shall see your good works and glorify your father who is in heaven.

[25:24] We're told that the gospel comes not in word but in deed and in power. The righteous man is blessed in his deed. And the lesson that is there by the way but it's very much not an unimportant lesson is that no amount of speaking Christian things will take the gospel very far if the corresponding righteous life is missing.

[25:48] so here is the king coming and very significantly he is the just one but also he has salvation.

[25:59] He is just and having salvation. Well of course that's the that is the reason par excellence for Christ's coming.

[26:10] The son of man is coming to save that which was lost. and thinking about this previously mentioned characteristic that he's just that he's righteous the aim of the atonement surely surely the aim of the atonement that Christ made was to bring salvation into harmony with the claims of righteousness.

[26:33] Righteousness and peace says Psalm 85 have kissed each other. it's in Christ and Christ alone that Paul tells us that God has become a just God and a saviour at one and the same time one and the same time.

[26:47] How could God forgive sin and be just at one and the same time only through the death of his own son? And it's an interesting way of putting it that the Messiah Jesus Christ the coming king has salvation.

[27:03] what that means as you go through the gospel is that he's one salvation that he possesses salvation that he possesses it not for himself he possesses it to bestow it on sinful human beings beginning with the forgiveness of their sins and ending in the life everlasting.

[27:24] And if he's got the salvation then it's for us it's for you it's for me friends to come to him for it. You see that very graphic picture of the famine stricken nations of Joseph's day he had been placed over the granaries of Egypt by Pharaoh and they came down and well he went straight to the palace and asked Pharaoh look we're in an awful state can you give us some corn and every time he said go to Joseph he's got complete charge he's got the granaries go to him and that's symbolic of Christ he's got salvation go to him do you want eternal life do you want forgiveness do you want peace with God do you want your sins taken away then go to Jesus he has salvation and he's got it to be stoned and salvation is a gift that the Lord Jesus Christ never refuses to give to those who sincerely and humbly ask him now it must be sincerely and must be humbly

[28:27] I suppose ministers are so used to using that word sincerely and humbly it almost becomes a cliche and people almost take it as a cliche but it's no cliche remember in school I don't know what it was like in your school but I know in mine that there were if you had toffee or if you had sweets nobody ever thought that they belonged to you or that you had a particular right to them or if you had a knowledge it was may I please do you mind I come to you very humbly and ask would you please give me a sack of your orange no it's gase a suki your orange or gase a bit of my cowan's toffee in my day my cowan's toffee was the great thing and gase a bit of that toffee or gase a sweet not do you mind please I mean you would you would think a child had gone mad if they said that to another child excuse me and bowing please give me a sweet or something like that no doubt some are more polite than another but usually it was gase a sweet now it is no cliche it is no it is no sort of unctuous thing for a minister to say we'll only get salvation if we come sincerely and humbly because we've got no right to it they may have assumed in school that you're no right to the toffee that you bought yourself but we've got no right to salvation therefore when the bible insists that we come like republicans sincerely and humbly it means precisely what it says we've got no rights we have to come surely we have to come like the fabrican who was justified who went home justified

[30:05] Jesus says when we say God be merciful to me the sinner and then finally the king the king who was prophesied would come lowly and riding and riding upon an ass and upon a colt the foal of an ass now you remember that it was part of the mosaic law that all animals that were devoted to the service of the lord were to be animals which had not up till then been used in the service of man so it was very important that for example if it was an animal it should be an unbroken colt the colt the foal of an ass and surely the special point we don't have to search for it very far is that the messiah is riding on such an animal pinpointed as being uniquely in the service of God no wonder he called him my servant as if there had never been any servants before here is my servant par excellence and that was symbolised by the fact that he sat on an animal that was dedicated to the lord it had never been in human service it was given up to the service of God and again

[31:25] I think we looked at this point some time ago that the ass was an animal you know used in peaceful domestic purposes it wasn't a war horse or it wasn't a war camel there were such animals but this is the ass symbol of peace and Christ is coming with a gospel of peace to men it was a warlike generation into which he was born but he wasn't coming to do warlike things he was coming as a king alright men would say he's coming as a king where are his armies where's the blood where are the garments rolled in blood where's the battle there won't be any the battle that will be will be the greatest of all with satan but it won't be with flesh and blood he came to bring gospel promises of peace he shall not cry nor lift apse's isaiah nor cause his voice to be heard in the streets now that's not a picture you know just of early people shouting to each other in the streets that's the picture of war that's the picture of people attacking a town now I think we can say this that that Jesus rode on the ass that that wasn't necessarily a mark of humiliation and lowliness in itself you know sometimes people say that's well that's just directly a mark of humiliation on the part of Christ because after all kings in time of peace kings rode on asses on donkeys of course they were suitably harnessed and they were suitably adorned for a king and that's why the people put their robes over the animal that

[33:04] Jesus rode but in this passage very much in keeping with the age in which the prophecy was delivered there seems to be a contrast between on the one hand the way in which the long expected messiah would arrive and on the other the pomp and the splendor of the princes and kings of Persia a great contrast a great contrast now although our lord was acclaimed with the hosannas when he entered into Jerusalem those hosannas were sung under a mistaken impression of what this kingdom would be like and I'm sure they seen people must have been aghast when they saw him clinging the money to change the crooks out of the temple changing the order of things we didn't think it was going to be like this you can hear them saying to each other almost in hours the hosannas were replaced with the cry crucify him the same people crucify him away with him away with him give us Barabbas not Jesus the general reception that our lord received was one of rejection he came into his own and his own received him not he shall grow up before

[34:29] God as a tender plant and as a root out of a dry ground there is no beauty that we should desire him he is despised and rejected of men a man of sorrows and acquainted with him and they are symbolized all that when you push it to its logical conclusion to its full biblical conclusion what it means is that salvation could come to the children of men only through the suffering of the Messiah in terms of atonement in terms of redemption not in terms of political conquest when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin then the pleasure of the lord shall prosper in his hand and lowliness or in character on the part of the lord jesus christ that distinguished his whole life and is it not the case that he held that forth as an encouragement to all to come to him for instruction and blessing those cooks in the temple as i say they were only interested in people that had the way with all if you had nothing you weren't welcome you might as well go very differently with jesus come unto me all ye that labor and a heavy laden and i will give you rest take my yoke upon you and learn of me why for i am meek and lowly in heart and ye shall find rest unto your soul what an encouragement to come to christ for salvation because he is lowly because he is meek and lowly in heart and of course he has left his followers an example that we should follow in his steps the christian mustn't be self-assertive the christian mustn't be proud the christian mustn't live a showy life the christian must walk humbly with his god or her god and must live on terms of kindness and neighborliness with their fellow men rejoice greatly o daughter of zion shout o daughter of jerusalem you might be glad to see a king and a war horse forget it rejoice because thy king cometh unto thee being just having salvation lowly riding upon an ass and upon a colt the foe of an ass because the saviour was of that description there's every reason for saying hosanna unto the lord let us pray the lord our god we thank thee that the one who was crucified was the just one that he went willingly to calvary's cross that he laid down his life no man took it from him but that he laid it down of himself and we bless thee lord that he has taken it again and that he's been exalted a prince and a saviour but that he remains the lord jesus christ who is meek and lowly in heart who is the righteous one the just one the one who will never turn any away who comes sincerely and humbly to him for salvation who is angry for his wonderful words for his precious words come unto me all ye that lay back and a heavy laden and I will give you rest take my yoke upon you and learn of me for

[37:52]  I am meek and lowly in heart and ye shall find rest unto your souls for my yoke is easy and my burden is like forgive our sins in his name Amen