3-29-26 “Welcoming the Right King” – (Membership Caring Month #5)
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“Welcoming the Right King”
(Membership Caring Month #5)
I want to start with something funny that I found on an internet site:
A boy asks his father, “Dad, are bugs good to eat?” “That’s disgusting. Don’t talk about things like that over dinner,” the dad replies.
After dinner the father asks, “Now, son, what did you want to ask me?”
“Oh, nothing,” the boy says. “There was a bug in your soup, but now it’s gone.”
Sometimes, family is like that. We don’t always say what needs to be said. We miss things.
We laugh, we struggle, we misunderstand one another—and yet, we still belong together.
Today, I invite you to think about “family,” as we conclude our membership sermon series.
What is a family? Typically, we think of family as people related by blood, marriage, or adoption.
A family shares life—emotions, responsibilities, and daily habits. From the very beginning of life, we learn what it means to love, to trust, to struggle, and to grow—within a family.
There is a Korean saying: “The habits formed at three years old last until eighty.” Family shapes who we become. So, let me ask you: Who is your family? And just as important—Whose life is being shaped by you?
I believe the church family also has a deep and lasting influence. Children grow in faith here.
They learn character, compassion, and confidence at church. We experience care, encouragement, and sometimes even healing from one another.
In my own life, I have seen broken family relationships because I grew in a strong patriarchal family, but I began to heal through the love of a church family. In Christ, I have experienced something beautiful—people respecting one another without boundaries, without bias, without discrimination. It’s a new kind of family.
So, who is our church family? One day, Jesus says, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother” (Mark 3:33-35).
Yes, you are my family. Yes, all who believe in Jesus Christ belong to this family. No matter who you are. No matter where you come from. If you seek to love God and love your neighbor, you are part of this family of faith. And a true church family is one that welcomes— welcomes all who come in the name of Jesus.
This brings us to today’s Scripture. On Palm Sunday, Jesus enters Jerusalem. “A huge crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him [Jesus] and that followed were shouting, Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven! When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil” (Matthew. 21:8-11a).
People gather. They shout, “Hosanna!” They lay down their cloaks and wave palm branches.
It looks like a joyful family celebration. But then the question arises: “Who is this?”
The crowd answers, “This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth.” Not wrong—but not complete.
They welcomed Jesus…but not fully for who He truly was.
They expected a certain kind of king—powerful, strong, and victorious. But Jesus came riding on a donkey. Jesus came as a humble king, a gentle king, and a king of peace. He was not the One they expected.
And here is the connection for us today: The kind of King we welcome shapes the kind of family we become. If we welcome a king of power, we may become a family that values strength and success. If we welcome a king of status, we may become a family that includes some—and excludes others. But if we welcome this King—Jesus—the humble and loving King, then we become a different kind of family. A family that welcomes everyone. A family that forgives. A family that cares. We are open our hearts, minds, and doors to everyone.
Look again at the road on Palm Sunday. People laid down their cloaks. They offered what they had. They made space for Jesus. No one had everything—but everyone had something to give.
Isn’t that what a church family does?
We make room. We notice one another. We care. Sometimes it’s a meal. Sometimes it’s a call.
Sometimes it’s simply being present. This is how we live as a family of faith. But we also remember this: The same crowd that shouted “Hosanna” did not all stay. Because Jesus was not the king they expected.
So today, we are invited to go deeper—not just to welcome Jesus with our words, but to welcome Him as He truly is. To follow the right King, we must truly know who Jesus is. And when we do, we become the kind of church family that reflects Him: a family where people are seen, a family where people are loved, a family where healing begins, and a family where Christ is present.
So today, let us ask again: Who is this? Who is Jesus? May our answer be clear—not only in what we say, but in how we live: This is our King. The humble King. The loving King. And because we welcome Him, we welcome one another—as a true family in Christ.
And if this is our King, then this is who we are called to be: a church that welcomes as He welcomes, a community that cares as He cares, a people who make room—not just on the road, but in our hearts and in our lives. So may we welcome the right King today. And as we do, may others come to know Him—through the way we love, the way we care, and the way we walk together in His grace.
I firmly believe that a Christian family should care for one another, especially during moments of weakness, sadness, helplessness, and powerlessness. It’s easy to make friends when all is well, but true family sticks around during the toughest times. Church membership holds significant value in providing support and care, especially for the vulnerable and hopeless. We are called to fulfill God’s will, which includes being there for one another.
So, I ask you again: Who is your family when you are weak, sad, helpless, or powerless? Will you extend your love and support to the vulnerable, the weak, the sick, and the powerless, just as Jesus did?
Thanks be to God. Amen.