How to Live a Triumphal Life: Based on Matthew 21

By Liju Gee Panicker

You are called to live a triumphal life!

Life is a mixture of God's fullness and triumphant victory. Abiding in Christ will allow you to experience a life of hope, dignity, peace with God, and salvation through Christ the King.

Jesus had a triumphal entry from the Mount of Olive to the Mount of Zion and He doe

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trilogy Christian Publishing
• Release date: Sep 1, 2023
• ISBN: 9798887382777

Liju Gee Panicker

DR. LIJU G. PANICKER is the lead pastor and prophet at GAP Generation Church located in South Ozone Park, New York. He is a well-known inspirational speaker who has traveled across the nations spreading the Gospel ofJesus Christ in 190-plus churches and 40-plus countries. At the age of sixteen, the Lord called him for full-timeministry, and from starting his church with three to four members, he has now baptized over 900 souls within the span of six years and has established numerous healing ministries, churches, and schools in many countries all over the world. He has been tremendously blessed with the gift of revelations and visions about the Word of God, and he is an ordained minister under the Assemblies of God in the New York district, having obtained a bachelor's, master's, and doctorate in theology.

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How to

Live a

Triumphal

Life

Based on Matthew 21

Liju Gee Panicker

Greyscale Trilogy Publishing logo

How to Live a Triumphal Life

Trilogy Christian Publishers

A Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Trinity Broadcasting Network

2442 Michelle Drive, Tustin, CA 92780

Copyright © 2023 by Liju Gee Panicker

Scripture quotations marked TLB are taken from The Living Bible copyright © 1971. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version of the Bible. Public domain.

Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without written permission from the author. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA. Rights Department, 2442 Michelle Drive, Tustin, CA 92780.

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Trilogy Disclaimer: The views and content expressed in this book are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect the views and doctrine of Trilogy Christian Publishing or the Trinity Broadcasting Network.

Manufactured in the United States of America

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.

ISBN: 979-8-88738-276-0

E-ISBN: 979-8-88738-277-7

Dedication

This book I dedicate to my sweet and loving parents:

my mother, Mariamma Panicker,

and

my father, late VM Gee Varghese Panicker.

Their affection, love, and encouragement prayers

of day and night make me able to get such

success and honor in the ministry!

Along with all

GAP Generation Church faithful partners!

Acknowledgment

First and foremost, praises and thanks to God, the Almighty, for His showers of blessings throughout my life. So many people have helped me in bringing this book into shape. I cannot mention the names of all of them, but I am grateful to all of them. However, I should mention the GAP Generation Church, who were the first group to whom the content of this material was preached. Their enthusiasm and interaction helped me a lot to convert my preaching into this book called How to Live a Triumphal Entry .

I offer special thanks to all GAP generation ministers who supported me in my journey and ministry. I deeply appreciate everything you did to help me to bring my sermon into this book.

I am grateful for the management and wonderful staff of professionals at my publisher, who helped me put my sermons together into a book successfully for each one of you.

I am extremely grateful to my parents for their love, prayers, caring, and sacrifices for education and preparing for the Ministry of God. Even though my father’s physical presence is not with me, the instruction and prayer still help me keep moving in the ministry.

I am very much thankful to my wife and children for their love, understanding, prayer, and continuing support in completing this book. In addition, I express my thanks to my sisters, brothers, sisters-in-law, and brothers-in-law for their support and valuable prayers.

Finally, my thanks goes to all the people who have supported me in completing the book directly or indirectly.

INTRODUCTION

OF THE BOOK

Christianity begins with the incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus. The triumphal entry of Jesus occurred one week prior to the resurrection of Jesus and Sunday prior to His Friday crucifixion, marking the beginning of his passion, his time of suffering, death, and resurrection. It is shared in all four Gospels, Matthew 21:1–17, Mark 11:1–11, Luke 19:29–40, John 12:12–19, as one of the key events of Jesus’ earthly ministry.

This book gives an overview of Matthew chapter 21 about the triumphal entry of Jesus. From the Old Testament time, from the time of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, they all were looking for a messiah. Messiah means the redeemer or the anointed one. Acts 4:25: You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David: Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of their earth rise and rulers band together against the Lord and against his anointed one. In Matthew 21:8, the priest forgot the meaning of the spiritual things, their eyes were on the earthly blessings. When Jesus came to the temple court, He saw that the temple turned into a business center. Businesspeople took over the charge of the temple. While Jesus saw what was happening inside and outside of the temple, Jesus opened His mouth and said, It is written my house is called ‘house of prayer.’

The story of the triumphal entry is one of the main incidents in the life of Jesus, which appears in all four Gospel accounts (Matthew 21:1–17; Mark 11:1–11; Luke 19:29–40; John 12:12–19). Putting the four accounts together, it becomes clear that the triumphal entry was a significant event (Matthew 21). This incident happened in the last seven days in Jerusalem. Only one thing you need in your life—that is Jesus, and Jesus is the entrance for your triumphal entry.

The triumphal entry is the only place where we can see Jesus taking the three offices of His ministry together as the King, Priest, and Prophet. The three positions—priest, prophet, and king—have come to symbolize the threefold mission and office of Christ Jesus and His church. He will fulfill your desire when the kingly, priestly, and prophetic anointing will come upon you, your name will change. Follow the pathway of God; He will fulfill your desire; He is the God of all possession. Jesus made a declaration for you and me.

Jesus is taking these three ministerial anointing together to restore the temple of God from the hands of the thieves and establish His kingly kingdom on the Mount of Zion. Here we see, like God the Father creating the world in Genesis chapters 1 and 2, Jesus is coming as the God of recreation. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being (John 1:3). The great promise of the Word of God is not just that God will restore His people, but that He will restore his creation. God has given the new prophetic revelation.

God took seven days to create the world, here also we see Jesus taking seven days (Day 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th). This book reveals the new prophetic revelation which God gave me of the new creation of Jesus from Matthew 21.

In the beginning, in six days, God made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them and rested on the seventh day. The triumphal entry of Jesus signifies that people may change, but our God never changes. When sin entered the creation, God the Father laid out a promise to come and rescue the world from the brokenness of sin and overthrow the enemy of our souls. Jesus came to defeat the power of sin and death—Savior of our soul and giver of eternal life.

Like God comes the first day from the holy throne of God, here Jesus comes from the holy mountain of Olives. Like God the Father spoke the word to create the first day of creation, here Jesus spoke the word to the human kingdom, animal kingdom, and nature kingdom. What Jesus accomplished in Matthew 21 is incredible and unbelievable. It gives me immense pleasure to give you this book into your hand to enhance and enrich your spiritual life into a new dimension.

Just as how Jesus had a triumphal entry within seven days of His last days, you will also have an experience of the triumphal entry into your life. It means to be effective, fruitful, productive, filled with destiny and purpose. Each one of you who reads this book may experience His plan of restoration for you, exhibit those same qualities, and let the world see Jesus Christ reigning in peace and love through with the triumphal life.

CONTENT

Dedication

Acknowledgment

INTRODUCTION OF THE BOOK

CHAPTER 1

The Temple of Jerusalem—Historical Background

CHAPTER 2

Political Background—Jerusalem

CHAPTER 3

Cultural Background — Jerusalem

CHAPTER 4

Spiritual Background — Temple of God

CHAPTER 5

Jesus’ Threefold Office as King, Prophet, and High Priest

CHAPTER 6

Jesus’ Threefold Office as Prophet

CHAPTER 7

Jesus’ Threefold Office as Priest

CHAPTER 8

The First Cleansing of the Temple (John 2:13)

CHAPTER 9

Second Cleansing of the Temple

CHAPTER 10

Third Cleansing of the Temple of Jerusalem

CHAPTER 11

Repositioning the Position

CHAPTER 12

Rename the Name

CHAPTER 13

Rename Your Problem

CHAPTER 14

Rebirth the Birth

CHAPTER 15

Kingship and the Kingdom—The Future Kingdom and Kingship

CHAPTER 16

Five Kingdoms

CHAPTER 17

The Kingdom Principle and the Language of the Kingdom

CHAPTER 18

Declaration of Kingship of Jesus (Matthew 21:9,13,16)

CHAPTER 19

Exercise God-Given Authority

CHAPTER 20

Seven Authorities Statement or Word of Jesus to the Disciples and Crowd

CHAPTER 21

Seven Recreation of Jesus in Matthew 21

CHAPTER 22

Seven Questions (Matthew 21)

CHAPTER 23

Seven Difficult Questions Jesus Answers

CHAPTER 24

The Seven Woes

CHAPTER 25

Seven Days, Seven Creations

CHAPTER 26

Last Seven Days of Jesus in Jerusalem

CHAPTER 27

Last Seven Days of Jesus before the Triumphal Resurrection

References

CHAPTER 1

The Temple of

Jerusalem—Historical Background

David Conquers Jerusalem

In 1000 BC, King David conquered Jerusalem and made it the capital of the Jewish kingdom. His son, Solomon, built the first holy temple about forty years later. The land David chose, a threshing floor, was associated with Moriah, where the patriarch Abraham brought his son Isaac for sacrifice (Genesis 22:14). In the Bible, the mount is also referred to as Zion, a name that eventually came to encompass the entire Land of Israel. ¹

The first temple was built as an abode² for the Ark and as a place of assembly for the entire people. The building itself, therefore, was not large, but the courtyard was extensive. The Temple building faced eastward. It was oblong and consisted of three rooms of equal width: the porch, or vestibule (ʾulam); the main room of religious service, or Holy Place (hekhal); and the Holy of Holies (devir), the sacred room in which the Ark rested. A storehouse (yaẓiʿa) surrounded the Temple except on its front (east) side.

The first temple contained five altars: one at the entrance of the Holy of Holies, two others within the building, a large bronze one before the porch, and a large, tiered altar in the courtyard. A huge bronze bowl, or sea, in the courtyard was used for the priests’ ablutions. Within the Holy of Holies, two cherubim of olive wood stood with the Ark; this innermost sanctuary was considered the dwelling place of the Divine Presence Shekhina and could be entered only by the high priest and only on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur).³

The Temple suffered at the hands of Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylonia, who removed the Temple treasures in 604 BCE and 597 BCE and totally destroyed the building in 587/586. This destruction and the deportations of Jews to Babylonia in 586 and 582 were seen as fulfillments of prophecy and, therefore, strengthened Judaic religious beliefs and awakened the hope for the reestablishment of the independent Jewish state.

Rebuilding of

Jerusalem Temple

The ancient Israelite temple was a symbol that pointed to God’s desire to live among his human fellowship and rule the world through them.

The Babylonian exile ended when Cyrus II of Persia and Media, who made a public declaration granting the Jews the right to return to Judah and rebuild the temple in Jerusalem, conquered the empire. The Jewish people, who had been returned from their exile from Babylonian conquest, returned and rebuilt their temple known as the second temple. The Book of Ezra begins with a decree from King Cyrus of Persia, allowing the Jews to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple that had been destroyed by the Babylonians in 587 BC (Ezra 1:2–4). It also introduces us to one of the principal themes of Ezra-Nehemiah: the relationship between God’s work and human work.

Cyrus made his proclamation that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, and because the Lord stirred up the spirit of King Cyrus (Ezra 1:1). Cyrus was doing his work as king, seeking his personal and institutional ends. Yet this was a result of God’s work within him, advancing God’s own purposes. We sense in the first verse of Ezra that God is in control, yet choosing to work through human beings, even Gentile kings, to accomplish His will.

In a sense, the temple became the king’s private worship place presenting the Temple as an elitist form of worship, a concept that was strengthened by the power of the developing priestly class.⁴

God used a person to rebuild the temple, which was less visible in the sight of the people of Israel. To reconstruct the temple of Jerusalem, God used a heathen king Cyrus who remained powerful and wealthy at the time when the people of Israel lost everything under the Babylonian exile. The people of Israel actually did the work rebuilding the temple. Their labors were successful because of help from two heathen kings, the Lord stirred up the spirit of King Cyrus (Ezra 1:1). King Cyrus started the statured the work, and God turned the heart of Darius, King of Persia, who financially supported the building in the hope that Lord will bless him and his sons (Ezra 6:8–10). As we have seen, God is at work far beyond our thoughts and imaginations.

God is using all things to work towards His kingdom, not necessarily towards our personal success; He can use anyone. When we read in the Bible, the temple of Jerusalem was not only the worship place to sacrifice the people for their sins but also a place of gathering for the people of Israel. The temple was a sacred place to the ancient Israelites. The temple is a place where the people of Israel offered their sacrifices and worship to the Lord. The ancient Israelite temple was a symbol that pointed to God’s desire to live among His human partners and rule the world through them.

God’s work continued as many Jews took advantage. But in the time of Jesus, we can see the temple, which was rebuilt for worship, turned into a business center, a place limited to religious leaders and high-class people in the society.

The temple suffered at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. He removed the temple treasures in 604 BCE and 597 BCE and totally destroyed the building in 587/586.⁵

This destruction and the deportations of Jews to Babylonia in 586 and 582 were seen as fulfilments of prophecy, therefore, strengthening Judaic religious beliefs and awakening the hope for the reestablishment of the independent Jewish state. About fifty years after that, the Persian King Cyrus allowed Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple.

Cyrus II, founder of the Achaemenian dynasty of Persia and conqueror of Babylonia, in 538 BCE, issued an order allowing exiled Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. Work was completed in 515 BCE. There is no known detailed plan of the second temple, which was constructed as a modest version of the original building. It was surrounded by two courtyards with chambers, gates, and a public square. It did not include the ritual objects of the first temple; of special significance was the loss of the Ark itself. Ritual, however, was elaborate and was conducted by well-organized families of priests and Levites.

HISTORY OF JERUSALEM

IN JESUS’ TIME

Jesus enters from the Mount of Olives back to the Old City of Jerusalem, riding on a donkey—a symbol of meekness—to fulfill the Old Testament prophecies about the messiah the Christ (Zechariah 9:9). The crowds assembling for the Passover festival spread palm leaves on the road and greet Him by singing a popular pilgrim song: God bless the one who comes in the name of the Lord (Mark 11:9, Psalm 118:25–26).

The Mount of Olives—also called Olivet — is a small range of four hills (the highest at 2750ft/838m above sea level) which reaches about 250ft/75m above Jerusalem to the east of the Kidron Valley (see Map). The name derives from the dense woodland of olive trees that covered the area in Jesus’ time.

Black and white simple map showing points of interest in Judea that are east of Jerusalem

Jerusalem to the east of the Kidron Valley (see Map) ⁶

Matthew chapter 21 speaks about the triumphal entry of Jesus. From the Old Testament time, from the time of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, they all were looking for a messiah. Messiah means the redeemer or the anointed one. Acts 4:25: You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David: Why do the nation rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth rise up and rulers band together against the Lord and against his anointed one. Why do the nations rage? You spoke through the Holy Spirit by the mouth of your father, David. David was the anointed king by God. Why are the nations fighting against us? Why do they fight against the anointed one? They don’t want the theocracy, meaning, God to rule over them. They wanted a physical king. They want the kingdom to be restored from the hands of the Roman.

The Mount of Olives — The Place of Jesus’ Ascension and Return

During King David’s reign, the people of Israel gathered at the Mount of Olives, held a place where God was worshipped (2 Samuel 15:32).

Black and white photograph of the Kidron Valley in modern times, with olive trees and graves visible

The Kidron Valley with olives trees and graves ⁷

The valley of the Mt. of Olive was considered to be a burial place. The tombs beside the Kidron Valley bear witness to this truth. In antiquity, the Kidron Valley — referred to in the scriptures as a brook — would have been even deeper than today, channeling water most of the year (2 Samuel 15:23; 2 Kings 23:6; John 18:1). Even today, the valley still drains all of Jerusalem’s valleys to the Dead Sea.

Besides the valley, the Mount of Olives holds the largest Jewish graveyard in the world.

"When we are rejected from every corner of life, we feel we are isolated in the valley, like David. He looked into the eyes the Lord and went to the Mount Olivet, a place of rebirthing the hope for the future, restoration from our valley to the mountain top. Restoration from our Nazareth to the hill where you are going to birthing Messiah