Matthew 21: When the King Comes He Brings Order

Jesus triumphantly enters Jerusalem fulfilling prophecy as crowds proclaim Him as King, then demonstrates His authority by cleansing the temple of corrupt money changers who were exploiting worshippers. Through parables and confrontations with religious leaders, He reveals how true faith must bear fruit rather than merely maintain religious appearances.

• Jesus deliberately fulfills Zechariah's prophecy by entering Jerusalem on a donkey's colt
• Crowds spread garments and palm branches as a "red carpet" for the King
• Temple cleansing targets exploitation, not legitimate services for worshippers
• The withered fig tree symbolizes Jerusalem's fruitless religious appearance
• Religious leaders challenge Jesus's authority but are silenced by His wisdom
• Parable of two sons shows actions matter more than words in following God
• Parable of wicked tenants reveals how religious leaders rejected God's messengers
• Jesus identifies Himself as the cornerstone rejected by the builders
• Tax collectors and prostitutes enter God's kingdom before religious leaders who refuse to repent

Before you read God's Word, pray: "Holy Spirit, today speak to my heart and change my life." If you go looking for treasure in Scripture, you'll find it every time.

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Chapters

• 0:48 Welcome to Bible Breakdown
• 5:16 Jesus Enters Jerusalem as King
• 6:38 Cleansing the Temple
• 11:41 The Withered Fig Tree
• 13:30 Jesus's Authority Questioned
• 15:08 Parable of the Wicked Farmers
• 18:16 Setting Our Lives in Order

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:24

Well, hello everybody. Welcome back to the Bible Breakdown podcast with your host, pastor Brandon, today, matthew, chapter 21,. And today's title is when the King Comes, he Brings Order. When the Kingdom Comes, he Brings Order.

Speaker 1: 0:41

It reminds me of a story one time that my dad used to tell, and he would say that whenever his dad was in the military. And he said that whenever his dad was in the military. And he said that whenever his dad was out of town doing whatever he was in the Navy. So he'd go out on a boat for a while and he said while he was gone that they would do their best to obey. But he had two brothers, so a total of three. He said from time to time they would give their mom a hard time and all this kind of stuff. And he said that whenever his dad would come home, they would be so upset because when they would get in trouble they would have to write a letter to their dad. And he said they would meet, they would have dinner together, he would have, his dad would have gifts for all of them, and then, when he was done and everything was settled, he said my grandfather would pull out those letters and he would say okay, sons, it's time to put things back in order. He would say that it was sometimes good, because sometimes the letters would be about good things they had done and sometimes not so much.

Speaker 1: 1:38

We're going to read today about Jesus who's got some letters. He's going to put some things back in order. So we'll get into all that in just a moment. But if you like what we're doing here while you're getting your Bible out, getting ready for Matthew chapter 21, make sure you take just a moment to like, share and subscribe to the YouTube channel and the podcast. Make sure you leave us a five-star review on the podcast it really does help. But also make sure you go into the Bible Breakdown discussion on Facebook. They're doing a wonderful job over there writing devotions every day, and the more we dig, the more we find, and you can get links to all of this at thebiblebreakdowncom. All right, well, once again, if you've been joining us, get your Bible out, get your coffee ready to go, get everything where it needs to be.

Speaker 1: 2:16

Make sure you remember so you can kind of get the context with us that the overall goal of Matthew was to talk about King Jesus. Jesus is the rightful king and, as we've been saying every day because my hope is that it gets stuck in your head forever is that in chapter 1, matthew comes out swinging. He's like I have got the receipts to prove that Jesus is at least the king of the Jews, but he's also the king overall. And he spends chapter 2 through 28 talking about what that means. And actually yesterday, when we finished up at the end of chapter 20, we saw how those two blind men were saying Jesus, son of David. So they knew that Jesus had a claim to the throne. They knew that there was more to Jesus than just a rabbi, just a teacher. And when they started calling that out, jesus was like what you want, I got you buddies, what you want. And he healed them. And then they followed him. Well, where are they following him? Well, they're following him to Jerusalem.

Speaker 1: 3:16

Now here's something that you need to know about this before we get into this this is not the first time Jesus had been to Jerusalem. I know that sometimes people think that, but here's the thing In Jewish society, at least the men of the heads of household, this kind of thing they were heavily suggested slash required to go to Jerusalem between one and three times a year at least for the major feasts. So Jesus has been to Jerusalem over and over and over again, but this time is different. At this point he has been in his public ministry for three years. He has fed thousands of people, taught thousands of people, healed so many people. The crowd around him is just crazy and he knows it is time. The Passover is coming. That is the time when Jesus knows his time has come to be crucified rise again. But at this point the fever pitch about Jesus is through the roof. I mean, everybody knows there's something special about this guy, jesus, and so he is in this situation now where there are people all around him who are starting to believe he's the Messiah. What we don't know about in Matthew but we read about in the book of John. Jesus is at the height of his ministry because he just got through raising Lazarus from the dead, and so people are like only the Messiah can do that. And so there is this amazing moment here where Jesus is talking about the kingdom of God and now he's coming in as a conquering king. So we're going to read about this and watch how the king starts putting his kingdom into order. He's got his letters and he's about to wreck shop. So here we go.

Speaker 1: 4:53

Matthew 21, verse 1, says this as Jesus and the disciples approached Jerusalem, they came to the town of Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, and then Jesus sent two of them on ahead. Go into the village over there. He said. As soon as you enter it, you will see a donkey tied there with its colt beside it. Untie them and bring it to me. If anyone asks what you are doing, say the Lord needs them and he will immediately let you take them.

Speaker 1: 5:23

This took place to fulfill the prophecy that said, tell the people of Jerusalem look, your king is coming to you. He is humble, riding on a donkey, riding on a donkey's colt. The two disciples did as Jesus commanded. They brought the donkey and the colt to him and threw their garments over the colt and he sat on it. Most of the crowd spread their garments on the road ahead of him, with others cut branches from the trees to spread them on the road. Jesus was in the center of the procession and all the people around him were shouting Praise God for the Son of David, blessing on the one who comes in the name of the Lord, praise God in the highest heaven, and the entire city of Jerusalem was in an uproar as he entered. Who is this? They asked, and the crowds replied this is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth and Galilee.

Speaker 1: 6:14

Jesus entered the temple and began to drive out all the people buying and selling animals for sacrifice. He knocked over the tables for the money changers, in the chairs of those who are selling doves, and he said to them the scriptures declare my temple will be called a house of prayer. That's a hard word. And they asked Jesus, do you hear what these children are saying? Yes, jesus replied. Haven't you read from the scriptures? For they say, you have taught children and infants to give you praise. Then they returned to Bethany and they stayed there overnight.

Speaker 1: 7:03

Now pause, a couple of things are happening here that I think that are important Now. First of all, jesus knows the scripture. He wrote it. He's the one who inspired the Holy Spirit, part of the Trinity. The Godhead inspired these prophets to write this down. So Jesus knows that now it is time for the prophecy to be fulfilled. So he tells his disciples go, get a baby donkey, a colt, so I can ride it into the city of Jerusalem, because I'm fulfilling the prophecies and the reason why they would have put their coats and palm branches over the road is.

Speaker 1: 7:41

This is a road, right, there are no cars, and so people were walking through this, and so it was very uneven, unstable, and what it was is it was intended to soften the journey of the colt so it doesn't stumble. It's a colt, it's a baby donkey, it's going to be easy for it to stumble, and so they are doing this to create as much of a flat surface as possible so that it doesn't hit its feet up against rocks and stuff like that. So that's the point is, it's their way of pulling out the red carpet. Okay, that's basically what they are doing. Then what is happening is they are praising God for the son of David, in other words, the son of David, remember the rightful king of Israel. So they're starting to proclaim him as a possible king. That's why the Pharisees and Sadducees are getting angry. They're saying now, wait a minute. We got no problem saying that you call yourself a prophet. We can't deny the miracles you're doing, but they're calling you a king. That's not okay with us. And Jesus is saying wait a minute, it's the children that have perfect praise. So, in other words, he's not denying it.

Speaker 1: 8:43

The second thing is and this is kind of a hobby horse, kind of a soapbox for me as a pastor. The Bible said that Jesus went into the temple and he threw out the money changers and those who are buying and selling for animal sacrifices. The reason why this is a big deal to me is because at our church if you're part of real life church in Bowling Green, kentucky we have a cafe in our church. It's called Hope Cafe. The proceeds of everything that we buy, everything we sell, rather go to support missions all over the world and we have had people who have told us they weren't coming back because we were in direct conflict with scripture, because we were buying and selling in the quote unquote temple, and we've even had people leave us bad reviews on social media saying because of that. So I'm gonna clear this up for you real quick.

Speaker 1: 9:29

It was not a bad thing at what they were doing. People were coming from all over the known world. Jewish people that were all over the world were coming to Jerusalem and one of the things they were supposed to do, especially on the Passover, is they were supposed to present to God a lamb without a spot, without a blemish, without anything spotless, and sacrifice it. Well, here's the thing For some of these people, it would take them a month or two to get from where they were over to Jerusalem In that time. If they took a lamb it is now no longer a newborn lamb, now there is time for it to have spots and blemishes and stuff like that and so it was a service to the people to provide the opportunity for them to be able to do these things. So, in other words, the fact that they were selling resources at the temple was not the problem.

Speaker 1: 10:17

The problem was is they were gouging the people. So, in other words, if a lamb cost and this is not true numbers, but if a lamb cost $10, well, because they knew these people kind of didn't have a choice, they would charge them $50. And what are you going to do If you don't buy a lamb from them? You don't have a choice. They would charge them $50. And what are you going to do If you don't buy a lamb from them? You don't have one, you can't worship. So, in other words, they were gouging the people. The problem was not and you can read this in a lot of the old historical information it was not that they were not providing a service. They are well within their right. It was they had turned what should have been a service to the people into a money-making scheme. That was the problem. That is why we are so quick to tell people at Real Life Church all of the money that we receive from Hope Cafe goes into missions. We don't take a cut of that. All right, it goes into missions, because that's what it's for, because we don't want to be accused of this. But there's nothing wrong with it, as long as it is a service to the people of God, not a hindrance. Okay, here we go. Next we have verse 18.

Speaker 1: 11:17

In the morning Jesus was returning to Jerusalem and he was hungry. He noticed a fig tree beside the road. He went over to see if there were any figs, but there were only leaves and he said may you never bear fruit again. And immediately the fig tree withered up. The disciples were amazed when they saw this and they said wait a minute. How did that fig tree wither so quickly? And then Jesus told them I tell you the truth If you have faith and don't doubt, you can do things like this and much more. You can even say to this mountain may you be lifted up and thrown into the sea and it will happen. You can pray for anything and if you have faith, you will receive it. Now pause again.

Speaker 1: 11:54

There's two things happening here. Number one is the fig tree was a symbol of Jerusalem, and that is that he went to look for something. He went to look for something to fill him up and instead of seeing fruit, he saw leaves. He only approached the fig tree because it had leaves, which means it looked good. But the reality was is it looked good, but it wasn't good, and it was a symbol of Jerusalem. Jerusalem looked good, full of people doing worship. When you look closer, there was no true worship, there was no fruit, and so Jesus was actually saying it looks good here, but it's not good.

Speaker 1: 12:28

The second thing is is it's important to realize in verse 21 and 22, because it has been co-opted so much, where Jesus is saying if you have faith and don't doubt, you can do anything. You can say to a mountain be lifted up and thrown into the sea, and it will happen. Well, some people, who only read this verse and don't put it into context, they think that means that you can ask God for anything you want and he has to do it, but you have to read it in context. And Jesus is actually saying that you can in faith and don't doubt, but it also has to line up with the will of God. If you ask and don't doubt, in alignment with the will of God, god will give it to you. But a lot of people don't put that in the will of God in there. All right, here we go, verse 23,. Let's finish this up.

Speaker 1: 13:07

When Jesus returned to the temple, he began teaching and the leading priests and elders came up to him and they demanded by what authority do you do these things? Who gave you this right? He said well, I will tell you by what authority I do these things, if you will answer one question Did John's authority to baptize come from heaven or merely human? They talked it over among themselves and they said that if we say it was from heaven, he will ask us why we didn't believe John. It's a good question, but if we say merely human, we will be mobbed because the people believe John was a prophet. So then they replied we don't know. And then Jesus responded then I won't tell you by what authority I do these things, but what do you think about this?

Speaker 1: 13:48

A man had two sons and he told the older boy Son, go out and work in my vineyard today. The son answered no, I won't go. But later he changed his mind and he went away. He went anyway. Then the father told the other son you go? And he said, yes, sir, I will. But he didn't go. Which two obeyed the father? They replied the first. Then Jesus explained the meaning. I tell you the truth tax collectors, corrupt tax collectors and prostitutes will enter the kingdom of God before you do. For John the Baptist came and showed you the right way to live, but you didn't believe him, while tax collectors and prostitutes did. And even when you saw this happening, you refused to believe him and repent of your sins.

Speaker 1: 14:44

Now listen to another story. His servants to collect his share of the crop. But the farmers grabbed his servants, beat one, killed one and stoned another. The landowner sent a larger group of servants to collect from him, but the results were the same. Finally, the owner sent his son, thinking surely they'll respect my son. But when the tenant farmers saw his son coming, they said to one another here comes the heir of his estate. Come on, let's kill him and get the estate for ourselves. So they grabbed him, dragged him out of the vineyard and murdered him.

Speaker 1: 15:17

When the owner of the vineyard returns, jesus asked what do you think he will do to those farmers? The religious leaders replied he will put the wicked men to a horrible death and lease the vineyard to others who will give him his share of the crops after the harvest. And Jesus asked them Didn't you ever read in the scriptures that the stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone? This is the Lord's doing. It is wonderful to see. I tell you, kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a nation that will produce the proper fruit. Anyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces and it will crush anyone it falls on. When the leading priests and Pharisees heard this parable, they realized he was telling a story about them. They were the wicked farmers and they wanted to arrest him. They were afraid of the crowds, because those crowds consider Jesus to be a prophet. Wow.

Speaker 1: 16:12

So the reason why we call this chapter when the king comes, he sets things in order is because that's what he's doing. He comes in with this great shout of the people, he sets the temple in order, he starts to heal people and then he starts to set the leaders in order and say, hey, for a long time you've known what was right, but you didn't do it. There were other people who didn't do it at first and now they do. I'm going to honor those, because I'd rather honor the people who are doing it right than the people who know to do good and are not doing it. He's setting the kingdom in order.

Speaker 1: 16:48

That is one of the things I love about us reading through God's word one chapter at a time is when we do, god is setting his kingdom in order in our lives, and when we think about that, then, when we're going through God's word, it becomes a joy and an honor. When God points out things that we need to work on, because he's not sitting there pointing things out, because he's not sitting there pointing things out because he's trying to shame us or embarrass us, think about that. Why would God do that? He's, he's God, he's not. He has nothing out of shaming or embarrassing us. He does get something out of us walking closer to him, and so, therefore, when we read God's word and he puts things in order, he, he kind of gets on to us every once in a while. You know, just like he drove out those who are buying and selling and gouging the people. And he does this over there, does that over there.

Speaker 1: 17:37

What he's doing is he's trying to set his kingdom back in order, which you know, just like I was telling you about my dad that when my grandfather would come in, they would celebrate, they'd have dinner together and then he'd pull out his letters together. And then you pull out his letters and say, okay, guys, it's time to set things back in order. And so I want to ask you this question when you go to God's word, are you willing to go to God's word and say, okay, god, set my life in order. If your word says to do something, I'm going to do it. When your word says to not do something, I'm not going to do it? That's what it means to be a Christ follower. We follow Christ and we realize that's the best place to be.

Speaker 1: 18:11

So I'm going to challenge you when we're reading through God's word, before you start the YouTube video or start the podcast, pray and say Holy Spirit, today, speak to my heart, change my life. And if you go looking for treasure, you're going to find it every time. Let's pray together, god. Thank you so much for today. Thank you for your word, thank you that you speak your truth to us, and your truth is the truth. It leads us, it guides us, it challenges us, it heals us, it encourages us. I pray that every day we encounter your word, we'll encounter you, and that you, god, will set in order our lives so that we can live free every day. In Jesus' name, we pray Amen and amen, god's word says Jesus said in Matthew 28, verse 19,. If you know it, say it with me. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations. No-transcript.