The Palm Tree Blessing

John 12:12-13                                                                                                                               

12 On the next day much people that were come to feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem.

13 Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord.

Palm Sunday is the Sunday before Easter. It is the day that commemorates, or reminds us all, of the wonderful and glorious triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem; the days that were leading him up to the time of his crucifixion.

They had a custom in Jerusalem and in many different lands of the far Middle East of taking the branches of the palm tree and completely covering the pathway of anyone who had the highest honor of that day.

• This was a part of Roman games that were played.
• All types, such as Kings, Princes Governors, and anyone worthy of deserving honor.

But I want to say, there isn’t one person that deserves that kind of praise, but JESUS! Because he is King of Kings and Lord of Lords!

• He is the anointed one!
• He is the miracle man!
• He is the teacher of teachers!
• He is our ruler and King 
• He heals the sick!
• He raises the dead!
• He is the one that opens the blind eyes!
• He is the one that endured heavy temptations!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

There isn’t one king or anything that deserves worship like our Lord and Savior.  

 

 

 

I.              Praise and Worship

A.            Webster describes Worship- “as an extreme devotion, or an intense love or adoration”                                                                                                                                         

1.             But from the intellectual or superior standpoint, there is a difference between praising and worshiping Him.

 

• To praise him is to lift him up and to thank him and that is one right and awesome aspect of worship.                                                                                             

 

• But to really worship him, is to acknowledge whom this Jesus is that we worship!

David wrote:

Psalms 95:6 Oh come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker.

Psalms 99:5 Exalt ye the Lord our God, and worship at his footstool; for his is holy.

 

• We do not worship God just because we feel like it.
• We do not worship him because everything seems to be going right in our lives.                                                                                                                                                 
• We should worship him no matter what the case is or what we are going through!
• We must worship every day and every opportunity we have! We must worship him in spirit and truth.

 

Psalms 97:7 Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship Him all ye gods.

 

What our bible is really saying here is; let all gods, every image, all idols and all things that think they are gods and anything that thinks they are equal to God; Bow Down and worship him!  

• Because every knee shall bow, every tongue shall confess that Jesus is Lord. And they will bow and say He is God, our maker!  
• Every Image! Every idol! Everything that man has created!  
• They will bow!                                                                  
• Let every mouth, and everything that has breath, Praise the Lord.

II.            The Palm Tree Blessing

{Because every one of us needs a palm tree blessing}

A.            Our worship requires a sacrifice and a giving of ourselves

1.             It requires an attitude of not just anything or any type of worship “will do.”

 

B.            The bible said they took branches of the palm tree to worship him with.

1.             A palm tree averages about forty-fifty feet in height, and some will get as tall as eighty feet high!                                                                                                                             

2.             The trunk of the palm tree is straight and tall. In fact the stem of this tree provides a valuable amount of timber.

3.             Its branches grow from out of the top of the trunk and its leaves are frequently twenty feet in length.                                                                                         

 

4.             This palm tree is food for millions. Its sap provides and furnishes all kinds of agreeable wines.

5.             The leaves on the palm tree make brushes, mats, bags, couches, and baskets.                                                                                                                                       

 

And the people that celebrated the Passover feast were to take the branches of a palm tree…and worship Him!

• I wonder if we have any tree climbers in today?
• But somebody that is willing to get up!  Climb, and reach, and get to that limb! So they can bless the wonderful name of the Lord.                                                                                       

Are there any tree climbers here? Somebody needs to give it all they have got to bless him today. Somebody needs to climb a little higher to get their blessing.                                                                                                    

Anyone want a blessing?

 

III.          Christ Enthroned

• We need to worship Him every time we have a chance!                                                 
• Because something happens and something changes the air of our atmosphere and in the spirit world when we begin to worship him.  

A.            The custom was they would take either their garments or a nearby branch (8-20 feet long) of a palm tree and wave and worship the Lord.                                                      

B.            Then they would take that same leaf, and lay them down and bow before the King. And cry!  “Hosanna: Blessed be the name of the Lord!”                                                                                                                        

 

When they cried “Hosanna! Hosanna!” it meant: “Save I pray thee! Keep me and deliver me and preserve me!”                                                                                                 

Psalms 118:25 Save now, I beseech thee, O Lord: O Lord, I beseech thee, send now prosperity. 

• This scripture was recited originally and many others to appeal for deliverance.                                                                                                                                   
• It was Passover at this time and Israel’s cry was a cry of Praise of deliverance.

But the Bible says some will never worship him!                                                                  

 

Luke 19:40 And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.

 

The Pharisees wanted to stop this worship.

They rebuked the disciples.

The Bible says that if they would have stopped worshipping him that the rocks would surely cry out!

C.             This was the very first time in all history, and the existence of God that he physically became enthroned before the people.                                 

1.             So they worshiped Him! 

2.             If the people would not worship Him, the rocks and stones would have to.                                                                                                                        Since Jesus Christ, our King of Kings had enthroned himself…He demanded worship! Or the rocks, and stones would take their place.                       

3.             He was going to have worship on that day no matter what!                                               Because when God is enthroned, He deserves all adoration, worship and praise!

 

• Let me tell you… Once He is enthroned anything can happen!                                                                                         
• We must enthrone HIM!  I must worship Him!
• We must enthrone Him every time we come to church!
• Every time we pray, we must enthrone Him every time we can! 

 

I can’t wait to see what John the Revelator saw.

The throne set in Heaven!

So, I can worship that one that is sitting upon that throne!

Jesus knew it was His time to die for all humanity. And this was the day when He would suddenly come to his temple.                                                                                                                                                         

 

So when they placed Jesus and enthroned him on the back of that donkey where no one had sat before, something extraordinary happened!                                                               

The atmosphere became thrilling, and electrified when they enthroned the King!                                                 Come on someone needs to enthrone Him today!

• Something happened beyond you and me that cannot be explained.
• Something started moving supernaturally.                                                                                                            
• Garments came off; tree limbs started shredding off the trees.
• Clothes began to be cast before the King!
• Leaves and limbs bowed to worshiped Him!                                                                                                                

 

The Bible says the disciples begin to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice!             

Matthew 21:10 And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this?

This city was moved by the King!

The celebration and the excitement of the city was rejuvenated and full of an atmosphere of adoration and praise!                                          

The whole city heard what was happening around there!                                        When we enthrone Him as our God and our King…People are going to hear what is going on in Praise Tabernacle!

• When we extend our hands in the sacrifice of praise! People will come here to find out what is going on around here!
• When we boast to be excited
• When we become clamorously foolish in praise to our King

Someone, somewhere is going to hear about it!                                                            Someone is going to worship and praise Him!                                                                                 Someone is going to be changed and transformed!                                                    Someone is going to become a worshiper like never before!                                          Can we worship Him? Can we praise Him?                                                                            Can we thank him with all our soul, mind and body? God deserves our praise!

 

IV.          The Bending of the Branch

A.            Palm Sunday to the casual disinterested worshiper will never experience the true deepness of prayer, and intersession in their lives unless they are willing to go beyond the average worshiper.                                                 

 

B.            And if you are willing to go beyond the average worshiper, you can have all you want in your lives. You can feel the triumphal entry of Christ to come in and he will set you free!

 

C.             The palm branch was a symbol of triumph and victory!                                                      

1.             When they took this palm branch, they would worship God with a wave of adoration and praise.

2.             As the branch would bend, it would bend and extend just like our personal praise should do!                                                                                                               

3.             We need to reach and stretch and extend our praise to our God every day!

 

• We need to increase our praise!
• We need to praise, no matter how long we do it!
• We need to extend our worship to its fullest length!
• We need to worship Him with everything we have!
• We need to stretch out toward Him!
• We need to reach out to Him!                                                                                              

 

Every limb in our bodies should be praising him! Every mouth, and every tongue should be exalting him and saying Hosanna! Hosanna! Hosanna!  Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord!

 

V.            Triumphal Entry

So picture this…Jesus is in the Kindren Valley.

• Sounds are everywhere; multitudes upon multitudes are shouting HOSANNA! HOSANNA!
• Below the trail are the gates and walls of Jerusalem, by Harrods temple.                       
• There are literally multitudes of people, because it is the time of the Passover.            
• The city is now excited; they can feel extreme power permeating throughout the air. They are electrified! Rejuvenated and explosive praise is everywhere!

Then the miracle of miracles takes place!  A man comes in riding in on his new throne: small little colt.

But this is more than just a man! This is the branch of branches!

Isaiah 11:1 And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:

He was the branch that out of the root of the stem of Jesse, He came. The messiah is the beautiful and glorious branch!

He is called the branch of prosperity.

Job 8:16 He is green before the sun, and His branch shooteth forth in his garden.

He is the righteous branch!

Jeremiah 23:5 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.                                                                   

When you let the King in, anything can happen!                                                                                                                                            

We need to let him walk into our life right now and take care of our prosperity and all our needs!

 

VI.          Our King goes farther

A.            When the King of Kings entered Jerusalem, the people had no idea that this man named Jesus was the walking tree of life who would extend farther than any of us would go or have ever went.                                                                                                                                       

He extended farther than any worship could ever extend.

• Because this Jesus would be scourged until he could no longer stand.
• Ahead of him was a week of mockery and six trials between night and morning.
• Outright lies against him and a verdict of guilty that would echo from each trial.

That is why I worship Him!

• His branch bent past unbearable mockery, undeserved humiliation.                                      
• It bent beyond human suffering to the unthinkable, indescribable pain.

I enthrone Him!  

• His skin was literally ripped from His body creating huge gapping patches.
• A crown of thorns was pressed into his scalp.

I enthrone Him!  

• He will stretch past Ananias the high priest and Caiaphas’s deceits.
• Past the Sanhedrin, and even stretched past Pilot and Herod.
• He bent past all that spit on him, beat him and whipped Him with a cat of nine tails.
• Past the Roman soldier that pierced His side!

I worship and acknowledge who He is!  

• He stretched past the Roman legions and past every devil in hell.

He is GOD!

I love Him!  Because he didn’t stop there! He inclined and bent even farther.

• That wonderful tree of Calvary could not be satisfied with a halfhearted sacrifice.
• That rich red blood that rolled down the tree and spilled on the ground was for every soul that would ever live! It was for you and for me!
• He gave us all immeasurable love!
• Then paid it all…He was the ultimate unselfishness of God!
• He is indisputable Grace!
• He gave incomprehensible Mercy!
• He was the most extreme supreme sacrifice that was ever known!

I worship him!  Because he stretched even farther than that! 

Paul said we are to give thanks to the Father:

Colossians 1:13-14

13 Who hath delivered us from the power of Darkness, and who hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear son.

14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even forgiveness of sins.

• It wasn’t just enough for him to die.
• It wasn’t enough for him to be buried.

He would never be satisfied until he would stretch as far as he could go!

•  He bent past the glorious resurrection.
•  He even stretched past that and went as far as entering into his glory. So he could baptize you and me with the Holy Ghost!

But he even bent so far, that you and I could share His glory.

I worship Him! 

Today life is available to us.

There is a great purpose and reason to live.

Hope lives! And is alive in our souls.

He could not be kept down! Nothing in this world could keep him from dying for each one of us!

He has delivered me and set me free!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            I worship him!  Because his blood covers me!