Matthew 21:1-11
He Comes!
“He’s coming!” Imagine all the different ways you might say that phrase. With excitement. With fear. As a question. In anticipation, or in hope, etc. All those different ways that we speak the same phrase have different meanings. Whether we’re looking forward to family coming to visit, or afraid that some stranger is chasing after us, or any range of scenarios in-between, we speak in such a way to fit the scenario. So, what about with Jesus? How might you say such a phrase about our Lord’s return? If there’s something that Advent has to teach us about our Lord, it’s that he is and always will be the one who comes. As we begin our new church year, we face a drastic shift in our readings. We turn from talking about our Lord’s second coming to remembering his coming as an infant. You’ll see such an emphasis and connection in just about every hymn we sing today. “Lo! He comes with clouds descending…” “Savior of the nations, come…” “Lift up your heads, ye mighty gates! Behold, the King of glory waits. The King of kings is drawing near…” “The advent of our King…” that is, the coming of our king, and so on. As we enter this time before Christmas, we learn that his coming in power and glory is predicated on his coming humbly and lowly. Thus, it’s of utmost importance that we first understand the incarnation and coming in flesh and humility lest we be surprised by his coming in power and glory.
Today, then, we hear this fundamental truth of the season and of our faith. It’s not just that Jesus is coming. Rather, he comes. He has come, he comes here and now, and he will come again. Just as we see Jesus ride into Jerusalem, we shall see him ride in on the clouds. It’s for this reason that our Lord issues a gracious invitation to you and me. Thus, shall we learn:
COME, LET US WALK IN THE LIGHT OF THE LORD!
I.
So, run with the crowd up the Mount of Olives and hear the words echo throughout the area, “He’s coming!” Such a message would resonate throughout the crowd as some embraced the news with excitement and joy, while others would roll their eyes in disgust and sneering. It was abundantly clear from the prophets what the Messiah would come to do. As we read from Isaiah, “For out of Zion shall go the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, and shall decide disputes for many peoples,” Isaiah 2:3-4. The Messiah would come as a warrior king. He would come to rule over the nation so that he could finally put evil to flight. No longer would the wicked prosper in their ways and no longer would darkness be cast over the peoples. It’s this division between good and evil, righteous and wicked that the Messiah would bring to light. And understand, that the people saw Jesus in his triumphal entry as such a king. For so they shouted to him, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” Matthew 21:9. Their cheers were more than celebration. They were cries of hope for deliverance. Hosanna… save us!
Thus, we must understand on this First Sunday in Advent that we are those same people who greeted Jesus riding up from the Mount of Olives. We hear the cry echo through the crowd! He’s coming! And what do we do? Do we cheer and celebrate? Do we spread the news to friends and family? Or do we turn our backs and sneer at him as he passes by? For I know that answer seems pretty simple and straightforward… but it really is anything but. As Paul writes, “So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires,” Romans 13:12-14. To follow after Jesus is to walk the path perfectly. It’s to put our sin away in all its forms. For this is what Jesus has come to do; to break the shackles of sin and death that have enslaved us for so long.
II.
Hence, this is the reason why we must understand our Lord’s incarnation. For his incarnation, his humility and lowliness are intimately tied to his eternal reign. It’s not just who he is, but the very means for his eternal kingship. As Jesus rides into Jerusalem, he does so not as a typical king and conqueror. Rather, as the prophecies foretold, “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden,” Matthew 21:5. Our Lord comes to us, not the other way around. And he comes not with sword in hand to conquer his enemy, but rather, to bear our very burdens. He’s coming isn’t just a statement of fact. It’s an invitation of our Lord. He’s coming… and he wants to come to you. He wants you to follow in his path. Just as Isaiah wrote, “O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the Lord,” Isaiah 2:5. Jesus is the humble king who invites us to join his royal train. He invites us to step into the light of his holiness, his forgiveness and now walk in new paths.
Our Lord comes… whether we want him to or not. Our Lord comes no matter if you’re ready. Our Lord comes because he wants you more than anything else. Yes, Jesus rides into Jerusalem as a king, a hero, a mighty warrior. Yet, he becomes those things in his own ways, humbly, lowly. For Jesus places no crown upon his own head. Rather, he’s given a crown of thorns. Jesus fights for no royal throne, yet is called an insurrectionist. Jesus committed no sins, yet is sentenced to death as a criminal. Jesus rides into Jerusalem and goes to the cross for you and me… that he may die for us and win forgiveness and eternal life. And this he does for everyone… even as he invites us by his grace to join him in laying down our life that we may have his! For you see, it’s not a question of if he comes. He has come… and he will come again. Rather, he asks for you to follow him in your life, your words, and your deeds that you may come with him to his eternal throne.
So dear brothers and sisters in Christ, “He’s coming!” What a joy it shall be as we look back on his coming in the flesh, through his incarnation by the virgin Mary that we may know for certain that he will come again for us in mercy and grace! Our Lord comes… and may we come with him to walk in the light of his righteousness unending! In Jesus’ name! Amen!