The Crown of Thorns Matthew 27:26-31

I. They Crowned Him but Didn’t Make Him Their King A. The soldiers dressed Jesus as a king. - The Scarlet robe; The crown of thorns. - Rev. 1:7, Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.

Philippians 2:9-11 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Isaiah 45:23 that every knee shall bow!

I. They Crowned Him but Didn’t Make Him Their King B. Many pretend that Jesus is their king. - He seems to be king at church, but not at our home. - We show Him as king before other believers, but not at work. C. The thorns were painful bringing blood from His bow. - When we only pretend, we hurt our Lord. - Let’s really make Him king of our lives.

II. They Praised Jesus but Didn’t Mean it A. “Hail, King of the Jews” (v.29) - These were words of praise, adoration, and even worship. - “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?” (Lk. 6:46) - But true salvation, real faith brings real change. - 2 Cor. 5:17, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. - 1 Cor. 15:1-2, Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.

II. They Praised Jesus but Didn’t Mean it B. Many say things about Jesus they do not mean. - Many songs are but lies that we sing them in church. - Many commitments are never carried out in life. - Many of our testimonies don’t ring true. C. Jesus deserves our total dedication from His followers. - Are you dedicated to the Lord fully? - Phil. 1:21, “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” D. Let’s give Him our lives without reservation. - Are their areas of your life you have not yet committed to the Lord?

III. They Knelt as If to Worship but It Was a Form A. How deeply His heart must have been grieved! - As Jesus heard their empty, meaningless words; B. In bowing they were just going through empty motions. C. So it is with many today. - Too many form conclusions not based on facts. - Too little theology in our churches and too much ignorance D. Jesus deserves worship from our hearts. - He alone is worthy of our true worship. - He shall be crowned with ‘many crowns’ as King of kings and Lord of lords!

The challenges before us: - To give the Lord control of our lives now. - We must worship the Lord in Spirit and in truth.

Let the world know He is Our Lord, Our Savior and Our KING!