Advent 1
Matthew 21:1-9
December 2, 2018

“The Church Isn’t Of This World”

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

If you’re going to go to Church in your life and worship Jesus, then at some point you’re going to have to come to grips that it’s never going to be the hip, cool thing to do. Going to church is never going to be like going to a Trump rally or going to a Taylor Swift concert or going to a Bears game. Those things are all full of money, fame, power, and all kinds of excitement. The Church isn’t going to be that. And today, on this first Sunday in Advent, as Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey, we’re reminded of what we should expect with Jesus. We shouldn’t expect worldly success, power, fame, and money—because Jesus’ kingdom isn’t of this world. It’s a kingdom of faith, forgiveness, righteousness, and holiness.

Now this is the thing about Jesus. Does He not look like a complete failure? Look at Him riding into Jerusalem on a donkey. Remember this is supposed to be the big climax of His whole ministry. He’s been doing miracles and teaching and preaching for three years now. All around Judea He’s been building His fan base. He’s been gathering friends on Facebook and followers on Twitter and YouTube. It’s time for the big Passover celebration in Jerusalem, thousands and thousands of people in attendance, and Jesus is going to come in to greet His fans in a big parade.

But look at Him. Humble, and mounted on a donkey. By the end of the week, these same people will put Him to death. By the end of the week, He’ll be alone because everyone will have abandoned Him. By the end of the week, He’ll be hugging a post as they whip and beat Him. By the end of the week, He’ll be hanging bloody on a cross dying. By the end of the week, in fact, He’ll be dead. He’ll die with no big army, no big following, no big money, no big power, and no big fame.

Is Jesus a big failure? Have you made a mistake following such a failure? Maybe you should’ve picked someone much better to follow?

And what about the Church? Does the church of Jesus look like a big success? The Church really doesn’t have much power over anything does it? There’s no Christian political party pulling the strings to everything. And the Church really doesn’t have that much money. In fact, the Church is always begging for money. And the Church isn’t packed on Sunday mornings. At least it isn’t packed everywhere. There are always a few churches here and there that will be full but the whole Church is anything but full on Sundays.

And do you think our own congregation is a big success? Or are we more of a failure? We don’t have any massive budget. We don’t have any followers on Twitter or Instagram. We barely have a Facebook page. We don’t wield any power, even locally. Our membership has gone down, not up, over the last twenty years. Are we a success?

Yes, we are. As I said at the start, if you’re going to go to Church and worship Jesus, then you’re going to have to come to grips that it’s never going to be the hip, cool thing to do. But we know that going in. We don’t expect anything else. Because Jesus’ kingdom isn’t of this world. We don’t expect to be the hippest, coolest thing in Central IL or anywhere really. We don’t expect to have money, power, and fame. That’s no why we’re here. That’s not why we have Trinity Lutheran Church and it’s not why the Church exists anywhere else either.

Remember what Jesus said as He stood before Pontius Pilate. All alone. Looking like a complete failure. Pilate feeling stand for this poor, miserable reject from Galilee. And Jesus says to Him, “My kingdom is not of this world.” In other words, it’s okay, Pilate. Don’t feel bad for me. Yes, I’m a King. But I’m not the kind of king you think of. My kingdom isn’t a worldly kingdom.

He says another interesting thing to Pilate. He says, ‘If my kingdom were of this world, then my servants would be fighting.” If Jesus’ kingdom were of this world, then He would’ve done things a whole lot differently. So now I’m going to ask you once again to imagine with me. Let’s imagine that Jesus’ kingdom actually was of this world. That His kingdom would be like every other kingdom and would judge success by money, power, and fame.

What kind of really cool things could Jesus do if He wanted to be a rich, famous, and powerful king on earth? Just think of all the things Jesus could do. He wouldn’t have secret service agents or bodyguards. He has a whole legion of angels at His service. Anytime somebody dissed Him He’d send an angel to kill them. A mighty warrior with a flaming sword. He could be commander in chief of the largest and most powerful army the world has ever known.

Or what about the weather? How cool and famous would Jesus have been if He had used His weather-controlling capabilities for His own profit and success? He could literally make it rain or snow or hail or blow anytime He wanted. All His enemies would get darkness and storms. For His followers, they get perfect 70 degree weather all the time with light showers overnight when rain was needed. He could send snow for one day a year, on Christmas Eve, on His birthday, and then melt it all the next day.

And what about wealth? Could Jesus be rich? Winning the lottery really wouldn’t be a problem for Him. He could turn anything He wanted into gold or find all the gold that He made in the earth and dig it all up. With His wisdom and knowledge, He could invest in all the right places and be the richest man the world has ever known.

So why doesn’t Jesus do any of that? Why didn’t Jesus make Himself the richest, most famous, more powerful man in the history of the world? And why didn’t He make His Church the more famous, coolest, richest, most successful kingdom in the history of the world? Why doesn’t He ride into Jerusalem in a Corvette or a BMW instead of on a donkey? Why isn’t the Church packed with people and loaded with money?

Because Jesus’ kingdom is not of this world. He didn’t come to be rich, powerful, or famous. And He didn’t come to make any of you rich, powerful, or famous. He came to serve. He came to give you something much better and lasting than power, fame, or money. He came to give you righteousness.

Now the Church has long used a very helpful distinction about God’s kingdoms. This is to help you and me understand what we should look for in God’s kingdom. So we don’t expect the wrong things get disappointed when the Church isn’t rich, famous, and powerful.

So it can be said that God has three different kingdoms where He rules. The first is that He does indeed rule over all Creation. His kingdom of power. If you want power, that’s where it is. God has power. But it’s a behind the scenes power. He made the entire universe and still governs it. He keeps a lid on all evil in the world. He governs all things for the good of those who love Him. He’s in control of all things.

But that’s not the kingdom that Jesus came to bring to you. For you, He brings the kingdom of grace. When Jesus says, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near,” this is the kingdom He’s talking about. It’s a kingdom where sinners repent of their sins, where sinners are washed in Holy Baptism and made clean, where sinners hear the Word of the Gospel and are declared righteous, where sinners receive the body and blood of Jesus under bread and wine. It’s a spiritual kingdom, not a worldly kingdom.

You see here just a church with a bunch of sinners on a Sunday morning. Jesus sees His glorious kingdom of grace. He sees children of God who have been united with Him in Baptism, He sees people clothed in His white robes of righteousness, He sees people who are ready for eternal life, He sees people who are prepared to do His good works for their neighbors.

And, finally, if you want the big and great and glorious, then you will have to wait to see His last kingdom, the kingdom of glory. This one will come on the Last Day. And then you won’t have any doubts about anything anymore. He will restore all things in a new heavens and new earth and every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

But what you and I must understand right here and right now is that our King, Jesus Christ, rides humbly on a donkey. He’s not your King because He wants to make you rich, powerful, or famous. He comes to forgive you all your sins, which are many and great and shameful. He comes to make you righteous. And He comes to make you holy. That’s why you come to Church and why you believe in Jesus. He’s a King of grace. Not power or money or fame. A King of grace. And He’s exactly the King that you need.

Amen.