The King's Coronation Pt 1

[0:00] Well, I don't know if you've realised, but in just under four weeks' time, King Charles will be officially crowned king at his coronation service on the 6th of May.

[0:11] And one UK article wrote just two weeks ago, or thereabouts, whether you love them or try not to think about them as much as possible, there's one thing the royal family knows how to do.

[0:23] It's how to throw a party. As it stands, King Charles' coronation is shaping up to be one heck of a shindig. That's party. That's colloquial Aussie for party.

[0:34] And with three days of celebrations in the pipeline, it's the kind of event that will be talked about for generations to come. And that's even though he's planning a cut-down version of his mum's, Queen Elizabeth's coronation, though it will still have many of the same elements.

[0:57] But today we remember another king's three-day coronation. That has not just been talked about for generations, but has had a profound impact on generations.

[1:12] And that is the coronation of King Jesus. But why? Why has he had such a profound impact on generations? What makes Jesus the king worth following?

[1:27] Well, let's compare coronations between Charles and Jesus to see, starting with their replies to the religious leaders. And so at King Charles' coronation, he'll be led down the aisle, just like his mother was, and a religious leader will ask him a question, and he will respond with a promise.

[1:48] Let's see if we can have a look at Queen Elizabeth's. It's a bit dark, but the next ones get a bit lighter. A bit more volume, thanks. Will you solemnly promise and swear to govern the peoples of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, according to their respective laws and customs?

[2:20] I solemnly promise so to do. Did you hear us, by the way? Yeah, yeah. Well, like his mother, King Charles, will reply to the religious leader to make a promise, I solemnly swear to do, but King Jesus actually remains silent to the religious leaders to fulfill a promise.

[2:44] And so you can follow along on the screen or in your outlines from verse 1. Very early in the morning, the chief priests with the elders and teachers of the law and the whole Sanhedrin made their plans.

[2:57] They bound Jesus, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate. Are you the king of the Jews? Asked Pilate. He's not a religious leader, and Jesus does answer, you have said so, Jesus replied.

[3:12] The chief priests accused him of many things. So again, Pilate asked him, aren't you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of.

[3:24] But Jesus still made no reply. And Pilate was amazed. You see, Jesus makes no reply to the accusations of the religious leaders.

[3:37] He does make one reply, and not to the religious leader, but to the governor, Pilate. Yet even that reply is vague, isn't it? You have said so.

[3:49] It's like Jesus only half agrees, because Pilate has only got it half right. Yes, Jesus is the king, but he's not a political king, as Pilate thought.

[4:03] Rather, Jesus is God's servant king. You see, while King Charles will respond with a promise at his coronation, Jesus kept silent to fulfill a promise at his coronation.

[4:18] A promise that shows he is God's servant come to be pierced for our transgressions. And do you remember one of our earlier readings from Isaiah? God spoke about, the top of the screen, my servant.

[4:34] And notice this servant is pierced for our transgressions. But do you also notice that when he was oppressed and afflicted, like with accusations from the religious leaders, he did not open his mouth.

[4:50] He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. Jesus remains silent to these religious leaders to fulfill this promise.

[5:08] To show that he is not a political king, nor even the commonwealth king, but he is God's servant king. The one God promised hundreds of years earlier, which already makes this king, Jesus, a profound king, one who fulfills prophecies hundreds of years earlier.

[5:35] But King Charles will no doubt receive shouts from the crowd, which is point two in the outlines, a bit like the queen did. Take a look. Take a look. But the shouts from the crowd from King Jesus are just a little bit different.

[6:07] Have a look. Verse six. Now, it was the custom at the festival to release a prisoner whom the people requested. A man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the uprising.

[6:20] The crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did. Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews? Asked Pilate, knowing it was out of self-interest that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him.

[6:35] But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilate release Barabbas instead. What shall I do then with the one you call the king of the Jews? Pilate asked them.

[6:48] Crucify him, the crowd shouted. Why? What crime has he committed? Asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, crucify him.

[6:59] Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them and he had Jesus flogged and handed him over to be crucified. Notice there in verse 11, the crowd shouts for the release of a criminal or to ask for Barabbas' release instead of Jesus who is innocent.

[7:25] And then in verse 13, the crowd shouts, not God save the king, but rather crucify him. And again in verse 14, despite Pilate declaring that Jesus is innocent, they shout all the louder, crucify him.

[7:45] And so in verse 15, to satisfy those shouts of the crowd, Pilate releases the guilty Barabbas and condemns the innocent Jesus.

[7:57] But that's the point. The shouts of the crowd at King Jesus' coronation, you see, highlight the exchange that Jesus is making.

[8:08] Jesus, the innocent one, dies in place of Barabbas, the guilty one. Who can then go free. This is what this King Jesus is also doing for us, as we'll see.

[8:25] For next comes the crowning of the King. King Charles, we crowned in a similar way to his mother and with the same crown of jewels, currently worth $57 million.

[8:38] Have a look. And she puts on the great golden mantle, the imperial robe. Receive this imperial robe and the Lord your God endures you with knowledge and wisdom, with majesty and with power from on high.

[8:57] and of lead. Happy. Oh, heavy.

[9:10] Oh, heavy, and heavy. Happy. A little bit different to King Jesus.

[9:37] The soldiers led Jesus away into the palace, that is the praetorium, and called together a whole company of soldiers. They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him.

[9:54] And they began to call out to him, Hail, King of the Jews! Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff and spat on him. Falling on their knees, they paid homage to him.

[10:05] And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.

[10:18] And after King Charles is crowned, he is led out as well, but to a palace with pomp and ceremony like his mother. But King Jesus is led away, not to a palace, but to a hill called Golgotha.

[10:49] A certain man from Cyrene, Simon the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country. And they forced him to carry the cross. They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha, which means the place of the skull.

[11:06] There they offered him wine mixed with myrrh to dull the pain, but he did not take it. And they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get.

[11:18] It was nine in the morning when they crucified him. The written notice of the charge against him read, the King of the Jews. They crucified two rebels with him, one on his right and one on his left.

[11:36] And King Charles, once led to the palace, will appear on the balcony to the cheers of the crowd. As she comes forth now upon the balcony of Buckingham Palace, before which, by tradition, the people come together to express their feelings.

[11:59] But Jesus is lifted up, not on a balcony, but a cross, and not to the cheers of the crowds, but to their jeers. Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, So, you who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, come down from the cross and save yourself.

[12:20] In the same way, the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. He saved others, they said, but he can't save himself. Let this Messiah, this King of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.

[12:34] Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him. It's quite a contrast, isn't it? Of course, the irony here is that it's by not saving himself that Jesus can save others like us.

[12:55] You see, we may not be criminals like Barabbas, but we are all sinners. I mean, I wonder who here today has perfectly loved their neighbor as themselves.

[13:08] Always. Who here has perfectly loved God with all their heart, soul and mind? I haven't. As we heard before, we all, like sheep, have gone astray.

[13:23] It is hard not to do the Barabbas, you know, isn't it? Each of us has turned to our own way instead of God's way. We've dethroned God and made ourselves God of our own lives, despite him being, well, God.

[13:41] And so each of us at times has forgotten God, ignored God, or not honored God with our thoughts, words, actions. This is sin.

[13:53] And it's so offensive that it deserves punishment. And yet, like with Barabbas, Jesus, the innocent one, dies in the place of us, the guilty ones.

[14:08] So that we can go free, saved from the punishment we deserve. And that's what the darkness symbolizes in our passage.

[14:20] In our first reading, God promised that in that day when he would judge Israel for all their neglect and injustice, that it would be a day where he would make the sun go down at noon and darken the whole earth in broad daylight.

[14:38] And that day will be a time like morning for an only sun. And yet at Jesus' coronation, the sun is not only darkened at noon as promised, but it's like God is mourning for his only sun, as it were.

[14:59] For God's love for us is so deep that he pours out our punishment on his only sun. Verse 33. At noon, just as prophesied, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon.

[15:16] And at three in the afternoon, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, Eloi, Eloi, lama sekbathani, which means my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? When some of those standing near heard this, they said, listen, he's calling Elijah.

[15:33] Someone ran and filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a staff and offered it to Jesus to drink. Now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes down to take him down, he said.

[15:44] And with a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. You see, Jesus' crowning came with a whole bunch of suffering, didn't it?

[15:57] Not just a crown of thorns instead of jewels. Not just jeers from the crowd instead of cheers. Not even just the pain of crucifixion, although that is all enough.

[16:11] But also suffering the judgment for our sin. Symbolized by this darkness and his cry of forsakenness.

[16:23] As we'll later sing, the father turns his face away. Forsakes his only son so that he can welcome us as forgiven children.

[16:35] Or as we heard before, the Lord has laid on him the iniquity, the sin and judgment of us all. Of course, Jesus did all this willingly for us.

[16:47] He willingly remained silent to the accusation so that he would go to the cross. He willingly refused to drink the wine mixed with myrrh so the pain would not be dulled, but that he would feel it all.

[16:59] He willingly suffered all God's judgment in our place so that like Barabbas, we can go free. Free from judgment for life with God.

[17:13] You see verse 38? The curtain of the temple was torn into from top to bottom. You see, the temple curtain, like this one behind.

[17:26] Well, this is very small compared to the temple curtain, but it stopped. It prevented people coming to God. It prevented sinful people coming into the presence of a holy God from enjoying life with God, where we have access to him through prayer and the guarantee of heaven with a new physical life in a new creation to come.

[17:51] But because Jesus took the punishment for our sins, the curtain, we're told, was torn in two and the way to God opened. Can you imagine being there that day?

[18:07] Feeling the darkness? Hearing his cry? Seeing the curtain open? I want to try and help you to feel the darkness.

[18:18] So we can turn the lights off. We're pleased to know we won't sit here for three hours. But for the next 30 seconds, try and reflect on how it was our sin that held him there.

[18:35] Try and reflect on how all the judgment for all our sins was poured out on him. Try and try and hear that cry.

[18:56] My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Knowing he was forsaken for us. And that other cry, it is finished.

[19:11] For Jesus breathes his last. But then try and see that curtain torn in two.

[19:23] So with the lights on, we might see the way has been opened to life with God.

[19:40] Can you see or at least get a glimpse of the significance of this king's coronation? It's extraordinary. Profound.

[19:53] King Charles would be crowned with an expensive crown and no doubt serve for the rest of his life. And I'm sure he will do some good in this world. I'm not having a go at him. But he's not going to do realistically much for us, is he?

[20:07] Yet this king Jesus is crowned with suffering and served us with his life. And the good he does is to save us from judgment for life with God.

[20:23] This is why King Jesus' coronation has not only been talked about for generations, but had a profound impact on generations. For this king brings generations new spiritual life with God now.

[20:40] A new physical life in the world to come later. If we acknowledge that Jesus is our king.

[20:51] Verse 39. And when the centurion who stood there in front of Jesus saw how he died, he said, truly this man was the son of God.

[21:04] For Jews, the phrase son of God was another title for God's king, Christ, Messiah. They all titles that meant God's anointed king. But for the Romans, their Roman emperors or Caesars were often considered as divine sons of God.

[21:22] And so perhaps for this Roman centurion, he thought Jesus was both king and God, divine son of God. Either way, here is an acknowledgement, a profession of faith that truly Jesus was king.

[21:39] And of course, this is not just his whole coronation. This is just day one of Jesus' coronation. Like Charles, Jesus had a three-day coronation too. And let me tell you, day three on Sunday is a cracker.

[21:54] So do come back for that. But we have enough today to make a choice. We can either walk out of this room or rooms unaffected and continue to live our lives without Jesus as our king.

[22:10] And you can do that, but it means you'll have to face the judgment for your sins yourself. And the Bible calls that hell. Or you can acknowledge Jesus as your king today.

[22:25] Believe he died in your place to free you from that judgment for this life with God. What will you choose?

[22:36] If, like the centurion, you want to acknowledge Jesus as your servant king today, then there's a prayer you can pray. And for us who already have, then I think we can still pray this prayer too, to acknowledge afresh that Jesus is still our servant king, as a way of recommitting our lives this Easter to him.

[23:02] And the prayer goes like this. Dear God, thank you for sending Jesus to be our servant king. Thank you that he died in my place to suffer the punishment for my sins.

[23:16] I acknowledge or acknowledge afresh that Jesus truly is the king and believe in him. Help me to follow him for life.

[23:26] And so I'm going to encourage you now to bow your heads and pray this prayer. I'm going to say one line at a time. And if you would like to, and I encourage you to do so, just echo each line after me silently in your head and heart to God, and he will hear.

[23:47] So let's pray. Dear God, thank you for sending Jesus to be our servant king.

[24:03] Thank you that he died in my place to suffer the punishment for my sins. I acknowledge Jesus truly is the king and believe in him.

[24:23] Help me to follow him for life. Amen.

[24:35] Well, for those who pray that prayer for the first time, then can I assure you with absolute certainty that God has forgiven you and given you new spiritual life.

[24:49] God is now your heavenly father, regardless of how you feel. And you have the guarantee of life eternal, not just new spiritual life now, but the guarantee of new physical life later in the world to come.

[25:05] But I'd love to help you to keep following Jesus as your king in this life. And so to do that, please either speak to me or to Ricky, or at the bottom of your outlines is a little section you can fill in where it says, I prayed the prayer for the first time, and then just write your name and an email address so I can get in contact with you.

[25:28] Hopefully in front of you in the pews here, there are a couple of pencils if you need them. There's some pencils at the front over there. You can grab them during the next song if you prefer. And then on the way out, just pop it in the white box as you head out of the church today.

[25:43] But for now, let's sing about some of the things we've seen.