The Triumphal Entry (John 12:12-19)

Daniel L. Arter

The Gospel according to John • Sermon • Submitted 3 years ago

John 12:12–19

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Bible Study & Prayer every Wednesday at 7pm; if you come at 6pm, we’ll have a light dinner made for anyone who needs to come directly from work. Natalie is preparing some homemade chili with cornbread. We’d love to have you join us as we continue in our series through the Psalms.

There are renovation updates in your worship guides, you can read that on your own time.

This Saturday, October 30th, 2021, we need four or five volunteers to help us with an outreach ministry during the Philipsburg Revitalization Corporation’s Harvest Vender Event and Halloween Parade. If you’re interested in helping, please contact Natalie ASAP.

On Sunday, November 7th, 2021, we have a quarterly business meeting and our annual budget meeting after the Sunday AM Service. Both of those meetings are open to the public—we have several things to vote on that meeting, so if you are a member, please plan on being at that meeting. Also, on November 7th, 2021, we’ll be having a meal after the meeting to mark the end of our first year of ministry as a church. That meal will be in the Activity Room, though because we haven’t been able to order all the tables and chairs for that room, some of us may have to eat without tables. The church will provide the main dish for that meal, we’ll need help with the side dishes, drinks, and deserts—you can find the sign-up sheet at the front of the room.

During our meeting on November 7th, we’re planning on voting in our first deacon nominee—his name is Deane Herbst. Many of you already know him. Now I know that many of us come from different types of church backgrounds and each church did something different concerning what a deacon’s role is, so to help everyone in our church understand what exactly our deacons are and what they are to do, I’ve provided essentially and essay with all the details available to anyone who wants one at the entrance. Let me encourage those of you that are members to take one home and read through it prayerfully.

In addition, October 20th’s Wednesday Evening Bible Study & Prayer time was set aside to explain the role of deacons in the Bible and in our church, I’d encourage you to go on YouTube and watch that message so that you have a full idea of what deacons in our church do.

Normally, when electing deacons, I would’ve opened it up for nominations earlier, but since this is our first deacon, I have provided a nominee for you to consider. There’s a brief bio about him in each of these little brochure-like booklets, but I’d encourage you to speak with him and get to know him before the vote on November 7th.

As always, let me remind you to continue worshiping the Lord through your giving. To help you give, we have three ways for you to do so: (1) you can give in-person through the offering box at the entrance—this would be for cash and check gifts—if you write a check please write it to Grace & Peace and if you give cash and you’d like a receipt, please slip it in an envelope with your name on it; if you’d prefer to use a debit, credit, or ACH transfer, you can do so by (2) texting 84321 with your $[amount] and by following the text prompts or by (3) visiting us online at graceandpeacepa.com and select giving in the menu bar. Everything that you give goes to the building up of our local church and the spread of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Prayer of Repentance and Adoration

Call to Worship (Psalm 34:11-22)

Our Call to Worship is Psalm 34:11-22, which is the second part of Psalm 34. The first part of the passage focused on rejoicing in God together because of all that Jesus had done. It is a psalm of thankfulness. This section of the passage, is David calling all the people to learn from him with the primary point that the answer to hard times in life and the answer to the most ultimate questions are found in God. Please stand and read with me Psalm 34:11-22—I’ll read the odd-numbered verses, please join me in reading the even-numbered verses.

Psalm 34:11–22 ESV

11 Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. 12 What man is there who desires life and loves many days, that he may see good? 13 Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit. 14 Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. 15 The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and his ears toward their cry. 16 The face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth. 17 When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. 18 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. 19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. 20 He keeps all his bones; not one of them is broken. 21 Affliction will slay the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be condemned. 22 The Lord redeems the life of his servants; none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.

Congregational Singing

All Creatures of Our God and King

Come Praise and Glorify

Good and Gracious King

Scripture Reading (Zechariah 9:9-17)

I asked Stacey to read our Scripture reading this morning, which is in Zechariah 9:9-17. Before she comes up, let me give you some background information Zechariah 9 contains prophecies concerning two different people. Vs. 1-8 tells of a man who will be a king and violence, destruction, and devastation follow him (many conservative scholars believe that this is prophesying the rise of Alexander the Great, but that’s just speculation). Vs. 9-17, which is our Scripture reading, then compares and contrasts that violent, destructive, and devastating king with a different king, one who will ride into Jerusalem on a donkey—one who is coming to bring peace. This passage is quoted in our sermon’s passage, so please look carefully at the passage to prepare for this morning’s message. Stacey, please read Zechariah 9:9-17.

Zechariah 9:9–17 ESV

9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. 10 I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth. 11 As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit. 12 Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double. 13 For I have bent Judah as my bow; I have made Ephraim its arrow. I will stir up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and wield you like a warrior’s sword. 14 Then the Lord will appear over them, and his arrow will go forth like lightning; the Lord God will sound the trumpet and will march forth in the whirlwinds of the south. 15 The Lord of hosts will protect them, and they shall devour, and tread down the sling stones, and they shall drink and roar as if drunk with wine, and be full like a bowl, drenched like the corners of the altar. 16 On that day the Lord their God will save them, as the flock of his people; for like the jewels of a crown they shall shine on his land. 17 For how great is his goodness, and how great his beauty! Grain shall make the young men flourish, and new wine the young women.

Sermon

Introduction

This morning’s sermon continues our expositional series through the Gospel according to John with a passage that records something that you’re probably very familiar with, but you’ve probably really only looked at this passage during a specific time of the year. If you have your Bible with you this morning, please turn it to John 12:12-19. Our passage this morning is John 12:12-19, which records what we typically refer to as the triumphant or triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. Usually, when this passage is utilized in church services today, it’s utilized the week before Resurrection Sunday on Palm Sunday as the kickstart into a what is sometimes called “holy week.” And typically when it is celebrated as Palm Sunday, it tends to be celebrated with a lot of pomp and circumstance in a way to mimic the shouts of hosanna and the celebratory nature of Jesus’ actual entrance into Jerusalem, but let me remind you that to think that these people in John 12:12-19 were celebrating Jesus’ entry into Jersualem for right reasons is actually incorrect.

Remember that many of these very same people will be shouting for the release of Barabbas and the crucifixion of Jesus in a week’s time; and part of the reason for their change of heart is simply because they had false ideas of what the Messiah was to do. They’re celebrating the arrival of Jesus into Jerusalem because they think that Jesus, as the Messiah who just resurrected a man from the dead, is about to take his place as their king and that he’s about to take control of Israel from the Romans, but it’s clear as we get closer to the crucifixion that that is not what Jesus had in mind.

Nevertheless, today’s passage records the coming of Jesus into the city of Jerusalem and while often times when this passage is preached, the focus is on the loud shouts of hosanna and the celebratory nature of the event, we’re going to look at it in a different light. Yes, there were loud shouts and the people were certainly exuberant, but the reality is that the reason that this event is recorded in all four Gospel accounts isn’t because of the exuberant actions of the people, but rather because of the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies that proved Jesus to be the Messiah. One reason we believe in Jesus as the Messiah is because of the Old Testament prophecies that he fulfilled; this triumphal entry is one of those prophecies being fulfilled, but before I get too far ahead of myself, let’s read John 12:12-19.

John 12:12–19 ESV

12 The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” 14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written, 15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!” 16 His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him. 17 The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. 18 The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.”

As we study this passage together, we’re going to break it into three parts: (1) Vs. 12-13, the Celebration of the People will look at the people who shouted “hosanna” in a celebratory way—we’re going to talk about what precisely the people were doing, what people commonly think they were doing, and what they were really doing as Jesus came into the city of Jerusalem; (2) Vs. 14-16, Jesus’ Fulfillment of Prophecy quotes a specific prophecy from Zechariah to show us how exactly Jesus fulfilled the prophecy from Zechariah, we’ll talk about that prophecy and the symbolism behind Jesus riding into the city on a donkey’s colt; and (3) Vs. 17-19, the Witness of the people and the scheming of the Pharisees closes off this paragraph by looking at why the people were doing what they were doing and what the Pharisees thought of the whole situation. This passage of Scripture, while often utilized to teach us how we should worship Jesus today, will actually remind us of the hope that we can have in the future because of who Jesus is. It should encourage us and it should fill us with hope.

Prayer for Illumination

The Celebration of the People (12-13)

John starts this passage by giving us a bit of the setting—remember that just prior to this, Jesus was eating at the house of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus when Mary takes a large amount of really expensive ointment and pours it over Jesus’ feet. Mary did this to show honor, respect, and great gratitude for Jesus’ resurrection of Lazarus.

Vs. 12, says the very next day, “The large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem.”

This is the same feast that is first mentioned in John 11:55, which tells us that this is “the Passover of the Jews.” And because it is a festival or feast that all Jewish people were supposed to celebrate and remember, the city of Jerusalem had swelled to a much larger size.

Many scholars estimate that the city of Jerusalem had a population of 55,000 people during the life of Jesus’ Christ, which is a little bit bigger than State College when it comes to population

During major feasts and events (which Passover is a major feast), the estimate is that somewhere between 100,000-130,000 people would come into Jerusalem for the feast.

Which is about how much State College swells when Penn State is in session and there’s a home football game.

The difference being that while people in Pennsylvania are going to State College to watch a football game, people in first-century Jerusalem were going to the temple to worship Yahweh by remembering God’s provision for their ancestors in Exodus.

So, there’s a rather large crowd, but the feast itself hasn’t started yet. Remember, all of these events started a week prior to the Passover

The meal that Jesus shared with Mary, Martha, and Lazarus in which Mary anointed Jesus occured six days before the Passover, and since Vs. 12, tells us this event is the very next day, we’re still five days away from the Passover celebration.

Nevertheless, there’s a large crowd of people in Jerusalem and they had heard that Jesus was coming into the city.

And Vs. 13, tells us that these people “took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” There are several elements of this verse that I want to point out:

Starting with the branches of palm trees, this act of waving palm branches, which Matthew 21:8 tells us that they not only waved palm branches but they spread them on the road before Jesus along with their cloaks, is a symbolic gesture.

Most of us today, have no idea what palm branches and leaves were really for in the time of Antiquity. When we think of palm branches and leaves at all, the only thing that we might think of is when churches give out palm leaves on Palm Sunday.

In the Ancient Near East, Palm leaves and branches had very symbolic meanings and the people would have recognized the symbolic meaning.

To wave a palm branch in the way that they were symbolized victory and kingship. Edwin Blum states that “[in their minds] Jerusalem was the city of the great King and He was coming to it.” In their minds, the Messiah had come, but remember that in their minds, they believe that the Messiah is going to save them politically—that the Messiah would remove them from the bondage of the Roman Empire (despite the fact that Jesus had already rejected that idea in John 6:15).

They were utilizing these palm trees, branches, and leaves to essentially state that their Messiah had come and he was going to save them from Rome—and I’m saying this like that intentionally, because I want you to be reminded of the fact that while they’re crying out like this and it seems like they really understand that Jesus is truly the Messiah, they don’t actually understand that he’s not about to save them politically or socially, he’s about to save them spiritually.

Let’s look at the word “Hosanna!”

Hosanna as a word is probably familiar to you in the extent that you’ve heard the word utilized at church. We sing songs with the word hosanna in it, some churches will proclaim hosanna just like you might say amen or hallelujah, but for the most part, many believers today don’t know what it means.

Hosanna is a Hebrew word and it’s utilized in a Psalm that might also be familiar to you—in Psalm 118, the word Hosanna is utilized, but in our English translations it’s actually translated instead of just utilizing the word hosanna. Psalm 118 starts with the verse, “Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his mercy or steadfast love endures forever!” And the idea of God’s mercy or steadfast love continues through the psalm, with the Psalmist eventually crying out in Vs. 25, “[Hosanna], we pray, O LORD!” Again though, in our English translations, the word is actually translated in Psalm 118 and it says this, “Save us, we pray, O LORD!”

Psalm 118 is a prophecy concerning the Messiah, which is why in Luke’s account of Palm Sunday, the Pharisees were upset with the people’s response to Jesus and they tell him to rebuke his disciples. The Pharisees in Luke’s account were upset because they recognized that by the people utilizing that statement, they were essentially saying that he was the Messiah (even though their idea of the Messiah was misguided).

They’re crying out Hosanna! And then they’re also crying out “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!,” which is also part of Psalm 118, but in its original context in Psalm 118, it’s referring to pilgrims coming to the temple for worship.

Essentially, the way that it was originally utilized, the people already at the temple would shout this to greet other Israelites as they arrived at the temple—in that sense, it isn’t very surprising that they would greet Jesus with “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”

However, because they greeted him with palm branches and because of the phrase “even the King of Israel” they’re affirming their belief that Jesus is the Messiah—and it’s of note, that despite previously rejecting the idea of being the king of Israel, Jesus seems to accept it in John 12:13. That isn’t to say that Jesus previously didn’t think of himself as the king of Israel, it’s just to say that the time has come.

So Jesus is on his way into Jerusalem, and this mass of people that were already in the city hear that he’s coming and they go out to meet him and see him on the way into the city. As he’s coming into the city, they’re waving these palm branches, laying their coats before him, and they’re crying out ‘Hosanna! [save us!] Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!’” Reading all of these different things happening, it makes it seem as if the people really understood that Jesus was the Messiah and it makes it seem as if they are truly worshiping him, but let me remind you again, that they had a false idea of who the Messiah was to be—and because of that false idea, it doesn’t take much for them to turn against Jesus and his disciples. However, even in their lack of understanding, the people are doing things and they’re saying things that affirm Jesus as the Messiah; then the Bible records something that is vitally important in Vs. 14-16. Let’s read those verses again:

Jesus’ Fulfillment of Prophecy (14-16)

John 12:14–16 ESV

14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written, 15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!” 16 His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.

The Bible says that Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it and I want to be abundantly clear, that by this point, Jesus didn’t need to find a donkey because he was tired and he didn’t find a donkey because he still had a long trip, he did it specifically to fulfill prophecy. Vs. 14, “And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,”

Jesus finding a donkey to ride into the city was not for his own benefit, it was quite literally for our benefit because it fulfilled prophecy.

John quotes that prophecy in Vs. 15, which is a quote of Zechariah 9:9, which is a prophecy concerning the coming Messiah. We read the prophecy for our Scripture reading, but let me refresh your minds by reading Zechariah 9:9, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

Zechariah 9 continues by stating that the coming Messiah will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, the war horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow. That the coming Messiah would “speak peace to the nations; [and] his rule shall be from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth.”

That same prophecy from Zechariah 9, tells of how “the LORD of hosts will protect them;” that “the LORD their God will save them”

And whereas the people here shouting Hosanna believe that Jesus is doing this from a political, socio-economic standpoint, Jesus is actually doing it from a spiritual standpoint.

John’s quote of Zechariah 9 says, “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt.” And there are some interesting points to be made from this:

The quote here is to calm the spirits of the “daughter of Zion,” which was a phrase commonly given to Jerusalem.

But it wasn’t just to calm the spirits of the “daughter of Zion,” it’s to give hope. And I think the best way for you to capture this idea is to consider what life was like in the first century during war.

Imagine that you live in a city like Jerusalem, Jerusalem itself sits on a mountain top and there’s two valleys that converge on one end of the city and other mountains and hills surrounding the city.

If there was a battle, the king and his men would leave the city and you’d be able to watch the army walk from the city, down the valley, and over the next mountain before the people would be completely out of sight.

And remember, this is the first century—the technology doesn’t exist for there to be cell phones, tvs, and media coverage of the battle. The only way that you’d be able to hear anything about the battle is if a messenger was sent back or if the king and his men returned.

Unless a messenger was sent, the only way that you’d hear of a victory is when the military returned.

This verse telling Jerusalem not to fear because her king is coming, is utilizing that imagery—the king went off to battle, and now he’s back—don’t be afraid, because your king is here.

The people are utilizing palm branches, leaves, and their coats to essentially give Jesus the royal welcome as their king and the palm branches symbolize the idea of victory, but there’s something unique about how Jesus rides into Jerusalem.

When you consider the history of war, when a king or an emperor returns from a victorious battle, this type of “heroes’ welcome” was not only normal, it was expected. And if a king was returning from battle, they would typically be riding in on an animal of some sort, right?

Usually, as the king rides into his capital city after a victorious battle, he rides in on a war horse—the war horse being symbolic of strength and power and victory, but Jesus doesn’t ride in on a war horse this time.

How does Jesus ride into Jerusalem? On the back of a donkey’s colt, which wasn’t seen as a symbol of strength, power, and victory. A donkey is not known to be a strong, powerful creature. In fact, Zechariah points that out that the Messiah is being humble by riding on a donkey.

If not for this prophecy, Jesus could have ridden into Jerusalem on a war horse; and quite honestly, that’s what the people expected, but the prophecy was for Jesus to ride in on a donkey, why?

Because of the symbolic meaning of a donkey. The Jewish people expected Jesus to ride in on a war horse in victory because of their understanding of Zechariah 9, which states that the Messiah will save them from their enemies, what they neglected to understand from Zechariah 9 is that it’s a two-part prophecy

And in John 12, only the first part of the prophecy was coming into focus—The Gospels record the fact that the righteous Messiah is coming with salvation and he’s going to ride a donkey.

The second part of Zechariah 9’s prophecy doesn’t concern the first time that Jesus came, it concerns the eschaton, the end times, when Jesus returns.

The first time that Jesus came into Jerusalem he rode a donkey, why? Because the donkey is known as a beast of burden and humble creature meant to work. A war horse was known as an instrument of battle and destruction.

Jesus’ first arrival onto earth wasn’t to bring war and destruction, it was to offer peace to all that would believe and follow him.

Edwin Blum, “Jesus’ riding into the city on a young donkey was a sign of peace. He did not ride a war horse or carry a sword or wear a crown. Nor did He ride in a wheeled vehicle, as did many kings. His manner of entry fulfilled Zechariah’s prophecy which contrasted Jesus’ coming with the coming of [other kings].”

Jesus rides into Jerusalem amidst the shouts of “Save us!” and “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the LORD, even the king of Israel!” But instead of riding into Jerusalem as a victorious king from battle, Jesus humbly rides into Jerusalem on an animal that symbolizes peace.

Whereas the people are looking at Jesus to come in and establish his kingdom by force and they’re looking at him to come into Jerusalem as a victor ready for battle against the Romans; Jesus is coming in to offer peace.

How does Jesus offer peace? By providing us a means through his sacrificial, substitutionary atonement the cross for our sins to know God. 2 Peter 1:2, “May Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.”

Jesus offered peace through his death, burial, and resurrection and we experience that peace when we know God through Jesus our Lord.

The people expected the Messiah to come and establish a physical kingdom immediately, but Jesus’ first coming wasn’t to establish a physical kingdom, it was to offer peace to all who would repent from their sins and call on his name, to all who would follow him.

And that peace comes through knowing God through Jesus, which is only possible because Jesus is our advocate, Jesus is our intermediary.

And because as Colossians 1:19-20 says, “in [Jesus] all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through [Jesus] to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.”

How does Jesus offer peace? Colossians 1:21-23, “You, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, [Jesus] has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before [God,] if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard.”

Jesus is riding into Jerusalem in order to bring peace to all who would believe; and that peace is only possible because Jesus has reconciled you to God through his death, burial, and resurrection.

Jesus in John 12, is riding into Jerusalem not to establish his earthly kingdom, not to rage war against the Romans, not to take up kingship of Israel—Jesus is riding into Jerusalem in John 12 to offer himself as the only sacrifice pure enough and strong enough and good enough and righteous enough to reconcile those who believe with God.

But don’t get me wrong and don’t misunderstand this—Jesus in John 12 is coming into Jerusalem for the express purpose of offering peace to all who would believe, which is why he humbly rides into the city on a donkey, but that doesn’t mean that he won’t have an earthly kingdom, and that doesn’t mean that he won’t rage war against his enemies, and that doesn’t mean that he isn’t the King.

In our current day, Jesus is offering peace to all who will simply repent and believe in him, but Revelation 10:11-16 describes Jesus as the king who will rage war against all who rise up against him, “Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.”

And Revelation 21:1-5 tells us of Jesus’ future, earthly kingdom, “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.’ And he who was seated on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new.’”

So, Jesus will do the things that the Jewish people in John 12 thought that Jesus would do, but in John 12, he didn’t come into Jerusalem to do these things, he came into Jerusalem to offer peace.

But the people didn’t understand any of this, in fact Vs. 16 tells us that “his disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.” Even his disciples were clueless into what all of these events meant until they remembered the events after Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. Again, because they kept thinking that Jesus, as the Messiah would establish his earthly kingdom at that moment. So, they celebrated, and they shouted Hosanna, and in the last few verses we see more and more people joining this mass of people, Let’s read Vs. 17-19:

The Witness of the People and the Scheming of the Pharisees (17-19)

John 12:17–19 ESV

17 The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. 18 The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.”

These last remaining verses will only take a few minutes to work through before we dig into application: the Bible says that the initial group of people who witnessed the resurrection of Lazarus kept bearing witness, this simply means that they kept proclaiming the Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead.

And Vs. 18, tells us that the proclamation or the bearing witness of Lazarus’ resurrection from this group of people was the reason for the crowd to continue growing and growing.

It is notable that the resurrection of Lazarus is the last major miracle performed by Jesus in this section of John 1-12 and arguably, it’s the greatest miracle that he could have performed prior to his own death, burial, and resurrection.

This group of people continued growing larger and larger as they all sought to see Jesus and the paragraph ends with a statement of consternation from the Pharisees as they express their disdain in all that is occuring:

Vs. 19, “So the Pharisees said to one another, ‘You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.’”

The wording is a little bit awkward and it might help us understand it if we look at a different English translation of the same verse, so listen to what the NASB says, “So the Pharisees said to one another, ‘You see that you are not accomplishing anything; look, the world has gone after him!’”

The NLT says, “There’s nothing we can do. Look, everyone has gone after him!”

Colin Kruse, “The escalating popularity of Jesus caused [dismay] among his opponents . . . events had moved on quickly. Jesus was now appearing openly and in public places. Even though the Pharisees knew where he was, they could not arrest him because he was held in such esteem by the populace.”

In the remaining few minutes, I want us to look at some specific application for this passage. I mentioned early on, that often when this passage is preached, the emphasis is on what appears to be worship from the crowds of people; I did explain that for most of these people, they had a severe misunderstanding of what Jesus was intending to accomplish and that they assumed that he would start his earthly kingdom at that moment, when in reality, he intended to offer peace to all who would repent and believe in him. Our application might look a little different than how you’ve typically heard this passage preached:

Application

The Celebration of the People (12-13)—this passage starts with Jesus entering into Jerusalem with large crowds of people lining the streets waving palm branches and shouting out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” We discussed how despite this response, it’s clear from the rest of Scripture that the people have a false idea of what Jesus is about to do, which is why later in the book, we see so many of them shouting for Jesus’ crucifixion. The irony is that the people were right when they shouted affirmation that Jesus is the King of Israel; and they were right to shout Hosanna or “save us,” but they were completely wrong in how that salvation would play out. My application for this section might be different than what you expect:

Often, most people say that the application for this section is that we ought to worship and praise Jesus the same way that the people lining the road into Jerusalem did, but remember, even though they were right by calling him the King of Israel and even though they were right for crying out for salvation, they were there with a completely wrong understanding of what Jesus was about to do and it eventually caused them to essentially reject Jesus and cry out for his crucifixion.

So, while it is right to say that we should cry out for salvation, worship Jesus, and submit to him as our king, that isn’t what this passage is about.

Quite frankly, knowing how most of these people go on to reject Jesus stands as a warning to us to not allow our own ideas and preconceived notions prevent us from actually worshiping Jesus and submitting to him.

Just like the Jewish people in Jerusalem, we can have false ideas and false notions about who Jesus is and what God will do; and those false ideas and false notions can cause tremendous difficulty in our lives.

It could be that our false ideas and false notions will lead us to reject Jesus:

This happens all the time with people who claim to be atheistic or agnostic. If you gently and lovingly prod at them to determine why they have rejected Jesus, many times it’s simply because they’ve succumbed to false ideas about God.

They’ve allowed pain that they’ve suffered in life or frustration at people who claim to believe to prevent them from actually seeking out the truth themselves.

Perhaps I’m describing you.

The people during Jesus’ day relied on the Pharisees to teach them what God’s Word said, but unfortunately, the Pharisees were the blind leading the blind; and they didn’t lead people to actually follow God’s Word, but rather follow their own traditions and ideas.

We have been blessed with technology to the extent that we now each hold copies of Scripture in our hands and in our own language, you no longer need to rely on someone else to hear God’s Word, you have it right in front of you.

And admittedly, even though there are sections of Scripture that might be difficult to understand, the Bible itself is written for the common person, which means anyone can understand it.

They just need to want to understand it—they need to desire God’s truth and they need to seek his truth in his Word.

We live in a world in which technology has allowed us to listen to the teaching and preaching of several thousand people through the internet, on TV, and on the radio:

Let me encourage you to listen to everything with discernment—just because they happen to be on TV, just because they’re on the radio, doesn’t mean that they’re actually teaching the Words of God.

Just because they’re popular and “everyone” listens to them, doesn’t mean that they’re teaching the Words of God—the Bible says that people will have itching ears and they will accumulate teachers and preachers that fit what they want to hear—just because they’re popular, doesn’t mean they’re preaching the truth.

You might ask, how can I know when someone is preaching and teaching God’s Words?

And this is where the application is:

You need to be actively reading, studying, and learning to love Scripture—more than just once or twice a week at church. You need to be seeking God’s truth through his Scriptures every single day—that might mean listening to it through a recording; that might mean sitting down for an hour each day and reading through verse-by-verse, thought-by-thought, book-by-book; but you must be actively reading, studying, and loving Scripture.

You need to then practice discernment—everything that you hear preached and taught, even in our local church—you need to go home, open your Bibles, and compare what you’ve heard to what Scripture says. You need to look at the passages, you need to find all the cross-references, you need to seek to understand God’s Word.

And in times when what has been spoken seems to contradict what Scripture says—you need to seek clarification (perhaps you misheard or perhaps you misunderstand), but if the contradiction remains, you need to reject what that person said.

It doesn’t matter if you like that person, it doesn’t matter if he’s an eloquent speaker, it doesn’t matter if 10,000 people go to his church every Sunday—if he doesn’t accurately teach and preach only what the Bible says, he doesn’t have the authority to call himself a preacher of God’s Word; and you as a believer looking for God’s truth, you need to hear God’s truth—not the preacher’s opinion, not his political ideology, not his philosophical or psychological view—you need God’s Word.

Actively read, study, and learn to love Scripture; practice discernment; and reject anything that is contrary to Scripture.

Jesus’ Fulfillment of Prophecy (14-16) and The Witness of the People and Scheming of the Pharisees (17-19)—from the last two sections what we see is that Jesus fulfilled prophecy by riding into Jerusalem on a donkey and that fulfillment of prophecy is why we worship and honor Jesus today. We read in that section of the passage how the disciples had watched all of these things happen, but they didn’t understand any of it until after Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection.

There are several hundreds of prophecies throughout both the Old and New Testament—many have been fulfilled, but there are many more that have yet to be fulfilled. We currently live in a time period of history in which Jesus has told us to be prepared for his return, but he hasn’t told us when that would be beyond just telling us that he will come as a thief in the night.

There are several people that attempt to line up various current events and try to say that the events are those that are found in Scripture, but quite frankly it’s foolish since Jesus tells us that he himself has no idea when he’ll be back, only the Father does, so what makes a person living on earth today capable of determining what Jesus doesn’t know?

And while I always discourage people from trying to line up current events to those of Revelation or elsewhere in Scripture, I always encourage people to live with what I call an eternal perspective.

Your life on earth is just a brief fraction of the life that you will spend in eternity with Jesus Christ if you have repented from sins and believed in him.

Even though sometimes this life seems to drag on and on and on; and occasionally, you’ll face times of great hardship and great difficulty, what John 12:14-19 teaches us is this, that Jesus keeps his word.

We serve a God that is a covenant-keeping God, which means that the covenant in which he promises to save all who would believe and make them his people is worth believing in.

That also means that when God says something will happen in Scripture, it will actually happen—that includes the fact that if you’re a believer, the Holy Spirit seals you for the day of redemption, that when Jesus returns to set up his earthly kingdom, you will be secure in the Spirit because of your belief and what Jesus had done on the cross

That means that when this earth passes away into the Lake of Fire, Jesus has provided for you a new heaven and a new earth in which you have the privilege of dwelling with him face-to-face.

These things might sound odd now because we live in a world in which we’re faced with sins and the consequences of sins, but God is a covenant-keeping God and he has made a covenant with all who would believe—and because God keeps his covenants, you can have hope and you can rest assured in him.

Which means this (and this is your application from this section):

Because Jesus keeps his promises, find hope in what he has said—hope is a confident expectation in what is to come; and true hope is based on what Jesus has said because Jesus keeps his promises. Even in life’s darkest days, you can still have hope in Jesus because of the grace that he shows us and the peace that he has offered through belief in him.

Because Jesus keeps his promises, you can have joy in what is to come—again, even in life’s darkest days, because we know that Jesus keeps his promises, we can experience true joy, which isn’t just simple happiness, but a joy that comes from the Holy Spirit that is expressed in thanksgiving.

Because Jesus keeps his promises, we should be compelled to praise and worship him—we serve a God that is consistent in what he has said. Do you realize that no other god in world history is like that? The Greeks and Romans served gods that were as fickle as man, people who practice Hinduism serve a pantheon of gods that act in evil ways and can change their minds on a whim. People who practice spiritualism and new ageism typically don’t even believe in a god (sometimes they believe in spirits, but not necessarily gods), and in each of these situations those beings are just like humans except they have some superhuman abilities. Jesus isn’t like us and that’s seen in the fact that every word of Jesus is always true. Because Jesus isn’t like us and because Jesus keeps his promises, we should praise and worship him.

And just two bonus applications: because Jesus keeps his word, his Word is utterly invaluable to us, which means we should actively read, study, and learn to love Scripture. Because Jesus is trustworthy, his Word is trustworthy. Don’t take it for granted. Because Jesus keeps his promises, we can confidently point other people to him because we know that if they repent and they believe, Jesus will hold them in his hand.

Put simply, what we see in John 12:12-19 is a warning to reject anything that contradicts Scripture, an encouragement to actively read, study, and learn to love Scripture; and what we see in John 12:12-19 is a reminder that Jesus keeps his promises and because Jesus keeps his promises—we can have hope, we can have joy, and we should praise and worship him.

Because Jesus keeps his promises—have hope, have joy, praise and worship him, and seek to read, study, and love his Words.

Congregational Singing

To the Praise of His Glorious Grace