Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Prayer Meeting Lesson Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/pm/pm20100331.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Luke: Jesus, The Son Of Man For All Mankind
Part LXVIII: Christ's Identity As God's Savior Seen In His Experiencing The Postponement Of His Reign
(Luke 19:28-44)
  1. Introduction
    1. For Jesus to predict His Kingdom would be postponed would supply evidence that He was God's true Messiah, but to see how He acted if that postponement actually occurred would be even more telling!
    2. Such an experience is recorded in Luke 19:28-44, and that event in view of both past and future prophecy repeatedly and abundantly supplies evidence of the credibility of Jesus as the Jewish Messiah (as follows):
  2. Christ's Identity As God's Savior Seen In His Experiencing The Postponement Of His Reign.
    1. When Jesus began to approach the city of Jerusalem, He directed His disciples to bring Him a colt of a donkey upon which no man had ever sat; they were to untie the colt and bring it, telling anyone who objected to this action that "The Lord hath need of him," Luke 19:28-31.
    2. This prediction entailed several bold claims: (1) Jesus predicted a colt would be tied in the city (2) upon which no man had sat, (3) that He would immediately be able to ride it, (4) with a strange crowd about the animal,a daunting task to say the least, and (5) the colt's owners would let the disciples take the donkey!
    3. Remarkably, all of these predictions came to pass: Jesus acquired and sat on the colt, peacefully making His way toward the city of Jerusalem surrounded by a huge crowd, Luke 19:32-36a.
    4. As Jesus went, the crowd of Passover pilgrims spread their clothes in the way and sang Psalm 118:26, a typical Hallel psalm, unaware they were fulfilling the Zechariah 9:9 prophecy, Luke 19:36b-38! That passage foretold Messiah would arrive in Jerusalem in striking contrast to Alexander the Great: where the latter had arrived as a feared conqueror on a war horse, Messiah would arrive in peace, riding on the colt of a donkey typical of kings who came in peace, Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978 ed., ftn. to Zechariah 9:9.
    5. Some of the Phraisees objected to the show, urging Jesus to rebuke His followers for seeming to honor Him as the Messiah (whom these leader denied that He was), but Jesus replied that if the crowd remained silent, even the stones would immediately cry out for Biblical prophecy to be fulfilled, Luke 19:39-40.
    6. Then, as Jesus came to the city of Jerusalem and beheld it, He began to weep over it, Luke 19:41. He grieved that if its people had realized in that day the things that would bring them peace, their future could have been so much better, Luke 19:42a. Jesus was alluding to the fulfillment of Daniel 9:24-26 that predicted that from Artaxerxes Longimanus' command in 445 B. C. to restore and to build Jerusalem until Messiah arrived would be 69 prophetic weeks of years, or 483 Jewish years, Ibid., Ryrie, ftn. to Dan. 9:25. This meant this "Triumphal Entry" of Jesus on "Palm Sunday" occurred on March 30, A. D. 33 (Harold W. Hoehner, Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ, 1979, p. 139).
    7. However, since Israel had not recognized Him as her Messiah, she would not then see His messianic blessings, what Jesus meant by the statement, "but now they are hid from thine eyes." (Luke 19:42b)
    8. Thus, Jesus predicted the days would come when Jerusalem's enemies would build an "embankment" against her, and surround her and level the city to the ground with her people in her, not leaving one stone upon another, because the people had not recognized Him as their true Messiah, Luke 19:43-44 NIV.
    9. This prediction was precisely fulfilled in A. D. 70 when Rome destroyed Jerusalem under the general Titus, Ibid., Ryrie, ftn. to Luke 19:43. The city was leveled, along with its beautiful temple!
Lesson: The fact that (1) Jesus of Nazareth predicted and fulfilled His prophecy about finding and effectively using the "unbroken" donkey colt, that (2) His use of it precisely fulfilled Zechariah 9:9 that contrasted His approach to Jerusalem with the previous approach of Alexander the Great, that (3) He precisely fulfilled Daniel 9:24-26 to the very date, and that (4) He wept over Jerusalem's neglect truly to accept His identity as Messiah and that (5) He perfectly predicted the future destruction of Jerusalem thirty-seven years later all supply evidence that He is Israel's true Messiah from God!

Application: (1) May we believe in Jesus as God's Messiah and Son to have eternal life, John 3:16! (2) May we live for and work for His coming Kingdom that was postponed, (3) being careful to trust and heed His Word unlike Israel in Jesus' earthly life that we not miss the blessings He offers!