HoHum:
“From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him. “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” John 6:66-68. To go from over 5,000 followers to 12 for many this would be a disaster. Jesus main ministry was not to gather large crowds. Jesus had them but that was not his main goal. For Jesus this was just a part of the Passover Plan.
WBTU:
Last week we saw 3 occasions where Jesus’ enemies wanted to seize or stone him. Not the only times this happened. How did Jesus get away without a scratch? Might be miraculous, but Mostly Jesus used the crowds to get away.
Jesus was a popular figure and there were always crowds that followed him and wanted to be near him. To be honest, there were times when Jesus did not want a crowd but there were other times when Jesus used the crowds to his advantage.
Jesus apparently took measures to thin out his crowds on occasions when he perceived problems that could interfere with his ministry.
Sometimes crowds were so large that they interfered with Jesus’ movement and safety risk.
“Because of the crowd he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him, to keep the people from crowding him. For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him.” Mark 3:9, 10, NIV.
“Meanwhile, when a crowd of many thousands had gathered, so that they were trampling on one another...” Luke 12:1, NIV.
Sometimes the large crowds wanted to to manipulate Jesus into doing what they wanted.
“At daybreak Jesus went out to a solitary place. The people were looking for him and when they came to where he was, they tried to keep him from leaving them.” Luke 4:42, NIV.
“Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself.” John 6:15, NIV.
Sometimes the crowds would not allow Jesus privacy when he desired it. “He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret.” Mark 7:24, NIV.
At times Jesus chose to avoid areas with large crowds. “Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places. Yet the people still came to him from everywhere.” Mark 1:45, NIV.
During his final week in Jerusalem Jesus retreated each evening to his friends in Bethany.
The Jewish leaders had circulated an “arrest warrant” for Jesus during his final week in Jerusalem. “But the chief priests and Pharisees had given orders that if anyone found out where Jesus was, he should report it so that they might arrest him.” John 11:57, NIV.
During the day Jesus moved about Jerusalem in the safety of large, sympathetic crowds.
Each evening he sought safe haven a couple of miles away in Bethany. “The chief priests and the teachers of the law ...began looking for a way to kill him, for they feared him, because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching. When evening came, they went out of the city.” Mark 11:18, 19, NIV.
Saturday evening- “Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead.” John 12:1, NIV.
Sunday evening- “Jesus entered Jerusalem and went to the temple. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve.” Mark 11:11, NIV.
Monday evening- “And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night.” Matthew 21:17, NIV.
Tuesday evening- “When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them.” John 12:36
Jesus was silent on Wednesday. Not in town, away from crowds, probably getting ready
Thursday is Last Supper. Jesus spent that night with his disciples celebrating the Passover in Jerusalem. This is the occasion when they seized him. Jesus orchestrated all of these details.
Jesus many times avoided a premature arrest and execution by moving about in large crowds that had sympathy for him and a distrust of the Jewish leaders.
It was protection of the crowd that allowed Jesus to teach in the temple each day of his final week without being apprehended by his enemies. “They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.” Matthew 21:46
It was also the protection of the crowd that forced his enemies to resort to paying Judas for advance information regarding an occasion when Jesus would not be in a crowd. “Then one of the Twelve--the one called Judas Iscariot--went to the chief priests and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty silver coins. From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over.” Matthew 26:14-16
This is all interesting but think about this, everywhere Jesus went there were crowds. So popular that people longed to hear him and be near him. Throngs of people everywhere. Was Jesus tempted to make popularity his god and idol? Tempted in every way- I am sure he was.
Even with all of Jesus’ popularity, Jesus never lost sight of his mission. “For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me.” John 6:38, NIV.
How would this affect us? There was a time when going to church was popular, at least more popular than it is today. Even those who did not go to church were at least sympathetic to Christianity. Today Jesus Christ and the church are not as popular as they once were. Not all bad. Popularity can lead to many temptations. Jesus faced them and there might be a time in our lives when we face them when things are going well for us.
Thesis: Talk about the downside of popularity
For instances:
Popularity can produce arrogance.
Professional athletes have a saying, “The player who believes his press clippings is doomed.” If we take approval to mean that we have no faults, we grow dangerously self centered.
“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.” James 4:10, NIV. Only the humble person can carry out the will of God in his life.
A disciple of Christ seeks to shuns a boastful spirit. Why be humble?
God is the Creator; we are the creatures; and in the presence of the Creator the creature cannot feel anything else but humility
“show true humility towards all men.” Titus 3:2, NIV. Why? Because we are all sinners in need of a Savior. We all came from Adam and only through the second Adam can we be saved. The ground is level at Calvary.
Popularity can result in laziness.
Because the main goal of many is to be accepted, when we finally sense the approval of the crowd, much of the tension and challenge that motivates us is reduced. We tend to coast, thinking, “I’ve arrived.”
This is not to be the state of a Christian. “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead, I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:12-14
Popularity can lead to disastrous compromise.
As we become more popular, we have to compromise some of our principles to stay popular. “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world (squeezed into society’s mold- Phillips), but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:2, NIV.
Compromise is subtle but deadly. How do we combat this? By staying grounded in Scripture
We need to realize several things:
1. The spirit of the world is hostile to the will of God. For too long we have been naive about the satanic forces that saturate our society. “the whole world is under the control of the evil one.” 1 John 5:19, NIV.
2. Compromise must not be tolerated. “Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.” Jude 1:3, NIV.
3. Our self worth is based on the Cross not on our popularity. Jesus Christ died for us. “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,” 1 Corinthians 15:3, NIV.
4. We must dare to take our stand for the cause of Christ, although this means having to make personal sacrifices like our reputation and popularity. “Woe to you when all men speak well of you” Luke 6:26, NIV.
Conclusion and invitation:
Popularity can be taken away. Jesus on the Triumphal Entry had the whole city of Jerusalem abuzz with his name and praises. That was Sunday but on Friday “the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus executed.” Matthew 27:20, NIV. “But they kept shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”” Luke 23:21, NIV.
