Palm Sunday: Entering The Passion Road

Palm Sunday “Entering the Passion Road”

John 12:12-19

INTRODUCTION

This typically has been called Passion Week

Why? Because it evokes so many passionate emotions (Expound – joy, happiness, sorrow, anger, hatred)

If you have seen Gibson’s movie…gruesome last 12 hours of Jesus’ life

It has evoked many emotions and questions

2 that I want to look at today that I think has been asked is

Who Killed Jesus?

Why Did He Have to Die?

Look at our passage John 12:12-19

The scene is one of triumph…Jesus rides into Jerusalem hearing the cheers of the crowd

Hosanna, Hosanna, Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord

The word Hosanna literally means “save us”…from what?

The people were looking for an earthly King or Savior that would set-up his earthly kingdom

To save the Jewish people from the Roman Rule

But Jesus did not come to establish an earthly kingdom

The same crowd that shouted Hosanna, would one week later shout, “crucify Him” because they realized He was not going to set-up as an earthly King

The triumphant entry into Jerusalem led Jesus down the Passion Road…the road to the cross.

TRANS: So then, it brings us back to the first question…

1. Who Killed Jesus

Some would say it was the Pharisees

Matt 12:14, “But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.”

The established religious leaders did not like what Jesus was preaching…they enjoyed their completed power

Jesus had embarrassed them many times in public…stoning of woman caught in adultery

Then in Matt 15 he rebukes them for not honoring their mother and father…not helping them financially as needed

Some say it was Pilate

He was the governor that had the ability to free Jesus

Pilate even said that he didn’t see any crime that Jesus had committed

But the crowd began to shout even louder crucify Him

Pilate had the power to free one man…they chose Barabbas

Pilate washed his hands saying that he was innocent of this man’s blood

But he still let Jesus go the cross and die

Some say it was Pilate that killed Jesus

Some say it was the Jews that killed Jesus

After Jesus did not come to save them from the Roman rule, He was no good to them

They all shouted “Crucify Him” and even pronounced a curse be upon them and their families to come

The leaders that stirred up all the strife against Jesus were Jews as well

Some say it was the Jews that killed Jesus

Some say it was the Roman soldiers

They were the ones that continuously beat Jesus

They took delight in his beating…they carried out the sentence of death

They committed the act of nailing Him to the cross…piercing His side

Some say the Roman soldiers killed Jesus

All of these sound like good conclusions…none are correct

A. We Killed Jesus (Sinful nature, lifestyle)

B. God Killed Jesus (Rom 5:8; John 3:16;

C. Jesus Killed Himself – gave his life freely

John 10:11…”the good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”

John 10:18 “No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again…”

TRANS: So then, the next question to be asked is…

2. Why Did Jesus Have to Die?

Started at the beginning in Genesis with Adam’s Sin

God’s perfect plan was shattered…never intended it

Because of Adam’s sin…we now are sinners

Rom 3:23 “For all have sinned and fall short of God”

Luke 16 tells us that there is a great gulf that separates man and God

It was the SIN that created that Gulf…and it separates us from God

When God created us…He wanted us to be with Him forever

But Adam’s sin changed that

In the OT, once a year priest…(STORY OF SCAPEGOAT)

But now that was not enough – God wanted our sins cleansed once for all

Heb 9:22, “…without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin.”

In order to redeem mankind…blood of goats and bulls no longer sufficient

Turn to Heb 9:11-14 (Expound)

God had to provide the sacrifice that would pay for all sin once for all eternity

Jesus was that sacrifice…He became the Scapegoat

In the garden scene (passion movie) Jesus was agonizing, sweating profusely, not because of the cross

But I believe because He knew what He was about to bare

The sin of the world…knew no sin…now the full weight

Also, separation from the first time from His Father

He agonized so much that He sweat drops of blood

But He willingly laid down His life. Why?

Because He loved you and me more than His own life

John 15:13, “Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for a friend”