A Study of the Book of John
“That You May Believe”
Sermon # 33
“He’s My King”
John 12:12-26
It is now late March and the Feast of the Passover is near. We are now in the last week of the Lord’s earthly ministry. The witnesses to the raising of Lazarus return to Jerusalem, broadcasting their sensational news, which is underscored by the presence of the former dead man himself, who is living proof of this miracle. Because of this there are those who place their faith in Christ as the Lord and Savior. This did not sit at all well with the religious authorities and the only action that they can think of that what will lead to a suitable solution is kill Jesus and Lazarus too (12:9-10). So even as Jesus enters the city of Jerusalem on Passover plans are already being made to kill him.
In verse twelve we read, “The next day a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, (13) took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, and cried out: “ Hosanna! ‘ Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!’ The King of Israel!” (14) Then Jesus, when He had found a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written: (15) “ Fear not, daughter of Zion; Behold, your King is coming, Sitting on a donkey’s colt.”
Some of those who witnessed Jesus arrive in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday will decide to reject Jesus as King because He was not the “kind of king” they were looking for. And whatever people may say today, “Jesus Is King” and my Bible says in Romans 14:11 “that one day every knee will bow and every tongue will be forced to proclaim that he is Lord!” Two thousand years ago as a symbol that He was the Messiah He rode a donkey into the city of Jerusalem. But according to Rev 19:11 when He returns it with the Host of Heaven and next time it will be with a demonstration of great power He will be riding a White Stallion.
What I want you to see with me for a few moments this morning is three things about the coming of the King!
First, His Coming Was Purposeful!
That Jesus should make his entrance into Jerusalem on this particular day in history was no coincidence. What transpired on the streets of Jerusalem was not a spontaneous demonstration… Jesus intended for it to happen.
On every previous occasion when the crowd has tried to proclaim Jesus king he had slipped away, but not this time. He often says, “My time is not yet come.” When He raises Jairus’ daughter, He tells his disciples not to say anything to anyone about it. When He came down from the Mount of Trans-figuration he tells those who have witnessed it to tell no one. Why does he act so differently now? Because now the time is right and Jesus removes all doubt about his identity. Jesus now purposely draws attention to himself.
His Coming was not only purposeful but…
Secondly, His Coming Was Prophetic!
Jesus meant for this to happen and he meant for this to happen now! Passover was a yearly celebration commemorating the freeing of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt. On the night called Passover God struck every first-born child of the Egyptians. This devastating plague led to the release of the Jews from bondage.
God told the Israelites to slaughter a lamb and to take the blood of that lamb and apply it to their doorpost of their homes. This blood of the lamb would be recognized by the Angel of Death as protecting the first-born child that lived within that home. It was meant to be a picture that pointed to another Lamb who would die in our place to free us from a much greater slavery; a slavery to sin and death.
It is not only likely that Jesus entered the city surrounded by sheep headed for sacrifice at the temple but that at the very time Jesus was dying on the cross . . . the sacrificial lambs were being slaughtered for the Passover feast. The most important reason why Jesus entered Jerusalem, particularly on the day he did was to show Himself to be our Passover. He was the Lamb of God taking on the sins of the world.
“The next day a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, (13) took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, and cried out: “ Hosanna! ‘ Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!’ The King of Israel!” (14) Then Jesus, when He had found a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written: (15) “ Fear not, daughter of Zion;
Behold, your King is coming, Sitting on a donkey’s colt.”
This is the fulfillment of the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9 (see Matt 21:5) although the disciples do not understand this at this time. As Jesus approaches Jerusalem he rides an as yet unbroken colt. A crowd comes from Jerusalem to greet Jesus, and they accompany him into the city, spreading their cloaks and cut branches on the road before Him. The crowds call out expressions of praise and celebration, hailing Jesus as “King of Israel.” The sounds of celebration reach the ears of those in the city of Jerusalem and many of the citizens join in with all the rest in welcoming Jesus.
The crowd here is welcoming Jesus as a political deliverer, as one who will throw off the shackles of Rome. These people want Jesus to be their king in the same way (and for the same reasons) that the Galileans wanted Jesus to be their king after He had fed the 5,000 (John 6:15). As William Barclay says, “Jesus approached Jerusalem with the shout of the crowd hailing a conqueror in his ears – and it must have hurt him, for in him they were looking for that very thing which he refused to be.” [William Barclay. The New Daily Study Bible. The Gospel of John. Vol II. Westminster John Knox Press: Louisville, Kentucky, 2001) pp. 136-137)
“To joyfully welcome Him as their “kind of king” is the not to receive him as “Lamb of God” sent to “take away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). To receive their kind Jesus is to reject God’s kind of king. This apparent reception, is in reality, a rejection. It is destined to result in rejection. It will take a few days to become evident, but when they finally grasp that Jesus has not come to fulfill their expectations, but rather to be a different sort of Messiah, they will quickly turn against Him, rejecting Him as their king.” (Bob Deffinbaugh. “The Un-Triumphal Entry.” John 12:9-19 www. Bible.org.
Some of the Pharisees become indignant, insisting that Jesus instruct the people to cease such praise, but Jesus refuses, indicating that if the people were to keep quiet the stones themselves would cry out (Luke 19:39-40).
Jesus was a new kind of King. A king such as the world had never seen before, but no one, including His own disciples under-stood that. “His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about Him and that they had done these things to Him.” (v. 16)
For if the people had understood they would not have rejected Him, which they eventually did. The crowd wanted a king, but they wanted a different kind of king, they wanted a king with a sword! For thousands of years the Jewish people had been looking for a Messiah. They were expecting a great military leader, who would overthrow all of their enemies and restore Israel to its former greatness and glory. What they did not expect was that their king would appear as the son of a carpenter. That when he appeared that he would not possess any weapons, no army and no political power! They certainly never expected that he would end up crucified as a common criminal another victim of their cruel oppressors.
But don’t misunderstand me, Jesus knew what was before Him, he knew that betrayal, humiliation, suffering and death awaited Him and yet He chose to come to Jerusalem.
His Coming Was Prophetic!
Third, His His Coming Was Passionate!
•Such is the magnificent love of the
Savior for you! So how could you wonder if God could possibly love you? I know that some of you perhaps may be saying, “But I have failed him. You are so ashamed that it is impossible for you to imagine that God could still care about you. Jesus is not surprised by our failures. He came to Jerusalem in order to deliver us from such things. He knows what you have done, and wants to make you clean and to set you free. His invitation is simple, "Come to me, all you who are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest." Have you done that? Are you hiding from the very One who wants to love you more than you have ever been loved before? Maybe it’s time to stop hiding and to start believing.
•Maybe life is difficult for you right now. Perhaps you wonder if God is "out to get you." Perhaps, things are so painful in your life that you are questioning his love for you. If that is the case, look again at His walk into Jerusalem and realize, that He loves you with a depth of love that is beyond imagination. See Him as he goes to the cross on your behalf and in your place. Realize that his love is so great that you can be certain that he would not allow any needless suffering in your life. The trials that come at present are purposeful and designed to lead you into something good.
•Perhaps, you find that life is characterized by loneliness and a feeling that you have been forgotten. It is possible, that you walk through your life wondering if anyone would miss you if you were gone. Understand that when Jesus marched into Jerusalem you were on his mind. The death He willingly suffered was a sacrifice designed to make you part of his family. You may feel alone, deserted, unimportant..... but you were significant enough to the Savior for him to go to a cross on your behalf. He knows you and loves you.
But I am reminded of our text; in verse sixteen we read: "at first his Disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that they had done these things to him."
On that day when Jesus walked toward Jerusalem the Disciples were unaware of what God was doing. They missed the significance of that day. Only later did they come to see the hand of God in all that was taking place. That may be true in your life as well.
But the fact that you don’t understand what is going on in your life, does not mean that God is not at work. He has promised that he would lead everyone who believes in him to that which is ultimately good. Our promise is that God knows what he is doing. You may not understand but you can trust him. In fact, God does not require you to understand. He just asks you to trust Him. The one thing we do understand is that the Lord wants us to entrust ourselves to Him. Are you willing to do so?
In verse seventeen we read, “Therefore the people, who were with Him when He called Lazarus out of his tomb and raised him from the dead, bore witness. (18) For this reason the people also met Him, because they heard that He had done this sign.”
The text reveals that the influence of
Jesus continues to spread in ever widening circles much to the alarm of his enemies. The people who had been present to witness the miracle of Lazarus being raised to life once more were more than happy to share with anyone who would listen what they had seen and experienced. And the crowd of pilgrim’s who were now in Jerusalem for the Passover from every part of the nation, soon were filled with excitement. It seemed that almost everyone in Jerusalem was filled with a sense of expectancy, waiting to see the Healer.
Everyone except his enemies, that is, who were frustrated, powerless, bitter, and faced the prospect of defeat. In verse nineteen the Pharisees exclaim, “You see that you are accomplishing nothing. Look, the world has gone after Him!”
Conclusion
Play Video “He Is My King” S.M. Lockridge.
The Whole world can reject Him and Jesus is still the King! Men today can do as they please and Jesus is still King! Folks can live as they please and Jesus is still King and He will still have the last word! The only question that remains is, Is Jesus YOUR KING? Do your Know Jesus As your personal Lord and Savior? All I am asking is Are you saved? With all the proof that you have been give today, with all the Scripture we have looked at today, how could anyone not understand that Jesus is indeed the King? If he is then you will either face Him at the altar of repentance where you will come by faith to him and be saved or you will face Him at the throne of judgment where you will be forever condemned. What will it be?
