WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYWAY?
JOHN 12:12-19 [Palm Sunday 2016]
INTRODUCTION… cnn.com/2016/03/13/politics/thomas-dimassimo-donald-trump-protester-interview/
It is election season so there is much going on in the news about the candidates and the rallies that they hold. I heard about a rally that Donald Trump held a few weekends ago where someone in the audience tried to rush the stage. The man who rushed the stage said in an interview later that he felt like Donald Trump is a bully and he wanted to get on stage and take the microphone from him. He did not make it to the stage. He was quickly blocked by experienced Secret Service agents and escorted out by Donald Trump’s security detail. The man was arrested for disorderly conduct and inducing panic. He was at the even to make a statement against the person speaking.
That got me wondering, who attends these types of events? I would have assumed that a person attending a Donald Trump rally would be someone who would vote for him or at least was interested in hearing what he had to say to make up their minds. Why would you go if you disagreed with them? Why waste your time?
That made me think about the Tampa Bay Lightning game Kelly and I went to the other week to celebrate her birthday. We have come to love hockey and were blessed to have extra money to go to a game to celebrate. Who goes to a Tampa Bay Lightning game? Obviously people who love hockey. Hopefully people who are Tampa Bay Lightning fans. There were also a lot of Boston Bruins fans there who dressed up and cheered for their team. It also makes sense that someone who doesn’t like hockey would go if they were dragged there by a fan, but the tickets are expensive and that is an expensive way to spend an evening at something you don’t like.
Why do I mention these 2 events? I mention those 2 events because this morning as we look towards Easter we read about an event where a large crowd gathers and we notice that in the crowd there are both people who want to be there and people who do not want to be there. Each of them have different motivations for being there and might have perceived the event differently.
The event that I am speaking of is what most Bible’s entitle “The Triumphal Entry” in which Jesus rides into Jerusalem a week before He is crucified. It is a large event attended by a “great crowd” (verse 12). Let’s read about this even from the Gospel of John.
READ John 12:12-19
The next day the great crowd that had come for the Feast heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. 13 They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, "Hosanna!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Blessed is the King of Israel!" 14 Jesus found a young donkey and sat upon it, as it is written, 15 "Do not be afraid, O Daughter of Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey's colt." 16 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. 17 Now the crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to spread the word. 18 Many people, because they had heard that he had given this miraculous sign, went out to meet him. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, "See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!"
So what are the basics of this event?
#1 Jesus makes His way into Jerusalem riding on a donkey
#2 A great crowd gathered in advance of His arrival to welcome Him
#3 Palm branches are waved and people shout to welcome Him
As we think about this event, it makes sense to me that there are four groups of people present at the Triumphal Entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem and each of them have a different motivation for being there and sheds light on their hearts.
I. ROMAN SOLDIERS: “IDK”
This group is not mentioned in any of the Gospel accounts, but I can imagine that they were there in the background. Roman soldiers were garrisoned in Jerusalem and were often stationed at the gates of the city to do their duty as the occupying force and to keep the peace. As the crowds gathered, they would have been alerted and would have been at least keeping a watchful eye on the crowds if not walking among them to remind them how to behave. Their line in this event would have mostly been: “I don’t know” for any questions that would have come to their minds.
Why are all the people gathering in Jerusalem today? “I don’t know.”
Why all of a sudden are they gathering at this particular gate? “I don’t know.”
Do you think it will turn violent? “I don’t know.”
Who is that Man riding into town on a donkey? “I don’t know.”
Why do they seem to be praising this Man riding into town? “I don’t know.”
Why are the religious leaders looking so angry at this whole situation? “I don’t know.”
The Roman soldiers who were observing may not have had any answers to the questions that were filling their minds as Jesus made His way into the city. They were observers who really didn’t want to be there, but had to. They had no frames of reference for answering any of their questions.
APPLICATION
Any given week in services there might be folks here who are just like the Roman soldiers. They are here, but they may not even know why they are here. Maybe that is you today?! There will be many who come to services next week on Easter who are in this group. You hear songs, but you don’t know the words and you have no idea why we are even singing. You heard us talk about “gathering around the table for communion” but none of us actually physically gathered around the table up here and none of us ate someone’s body or drank anyone’s blood… none of that made sense?! Now everyone is listening to this guy talk and you have no idea how long his little speech is going to last?! You might be here and your line is: “I don’t know.”
If I might, I would like to break down a few things quickly as to why we do them:
* We pray in our services because prayer is talking to God and we are here to honor God.
* We sing songs together with instruments to praise God in our hearts and to be honest, most organ music is dreadfully boring and slow. And we don’t have an organ.
* We metaphorically gathered at this table to specifically remember the sacrifice Jesus made for us on the cross. The bread symbolizes His body. The juice in the cup symbolizes His blood. Both are to remind us of Jesus’ death on the cross which paid for our sins.
* We take up an offering because it is a commanded part of worship for every person who regularly attends.
* My sermons typically last from 25-30 minutes and are based on a passage of Scripture which we dig into with stories and explanations for the purpose that we might live our lives in an authentic relationship with God.
WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYWAY: “IDK”
II. PHARISEES: “WE HATE THIS GUY”
The second ground that we will look at this morning was definitely in the crowd that day as Jesus arrived on the scene in Jerusalem and was heading into the city. Pharisees were there. What is a Pharisee? Pharisees were a group of religious leaders who were tasked with making sure the Jewish people followed the Law put forth in the Old Testament. They made sure everyone did what they were supposed to do and by the time of Jesus, the Pharisees were a very powerful group and were also very intrusive in people’s lives. Their line in this event would have mostly been: “We hate this guy” as they watched what was unfolding before them surrounding Jesus of Nazareth.
Look at how the people are rallying around Jesus because of His miracles. “We hate this guy.”
See how so many more people know about Jesus now than ever before. “We hate this guy.”
Observe that some of the people gathering believe He is the Messiah or the Christ. “We hate this guy.”
Look how the crowds are treating him like a King. “We hate this guy.”
See how the crowds follow Him even after He spoke against us and our ways. “We hate this guy.”
The Pharisees had tried to derail Jesus for His whole ministry. They asked Him thought bending questions to trap Him (Matthew 22:17-22). They put Him in moral situations which tested Him (John 8:3-11). They also tried to catch Him in legal matters (Matthew 17:24-27). They were unable to derail this Man who taught all about God and performed miracle after miracle and was slowly drawing people’s hearts back to God. They hated every minute of it.
APPLICATION
Any given week in services there might be folks here who are just like the Pharisees. I don’t mean that Pharisees are here who are rule followers and look down on others for breaking the rules. I am sure we have some of that. I mean more of you are here and you just can’t stand it. Maybe that is you today?!
Perhaps you are here today and you absolutely hate God:
* Maybe you hate God and Jesus because a long time ago you prayed for something and nothing happened.
* Maybe you hate Him because you prayed for God’s protection and something bad still happened.
* Maybe you hate God because His people are a bunch of homophobic self-righteous hypocrites.
* Maybe you hate God because you have realized you can’t live the way you want according to Him.
* Maybe you hate Jesus because you feel trapped in guilt and God has always been a God who is mad at you.
If you are here today and you absolutely can’t stand God or His people and you have been forced to come, thank you for coming. Thank you for sitting quietly and enduring something you absolutely hate. I of course would love to change your mind about a few things. I would like to mention just two things:
#1 Not one single person in here is perfect. Not one of us 100% does what God wants us to do. I myself am far from perfect and a person who deals with anger, emotional baggage from sexual sin, and pride. Our only hope is in Jesus Christ who offers us grace in the midst of our guilt.
#2 Your pride and choice to live how you want, when you want, the way you want will come back to ravage your soul. God always offers grace when you come to that point. Always. Please deal with the mess that is your life now rather than later. Please don’t push God away until it is everlasting too late.
WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYWAY: “We hate this guy”
III. CROWDS: “HOSANNA, BUT ONLY FOR A MOMENT”
The third group in the crowd that day is a very tricky group to spot. You see this group looks like the fourth group (which we will look at in a minute) on the outside, but isn’t on the inside. John 12:12 tells us that a “great crowd” (NIV) or a “great multitude” (NAS) came out to meet Jesus. This is not just a few people. We are talking hundreds and hundreds of people and perhaps even into the thousands. This group is a whole lot of people who have heard about Jesus’ teachings, seen some of His miracles, and perhaps even have met Lazarus of Bethany that Jesus raised from the dead. As Jesus entered into the city, crowds of people shouted 3 different things according to John 12
* “Hosanna!”
* “Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord!”
* “Blessed is the King of Israel!”
The line of the crowds in general was: “Hosanna, but only for a moment” because they soon stopped saying it. After Jesus entered the city, the great multitude that gathered went on back to their lives. What they said did not impact them. What they did was not a permanent part of their life. Some of them might have even been in the crowd a week later shouting “Crucify Him!” (Matthew 27:23, Mark 15:13, Luke 23:21, John 19:6). The praises on their lips for Jesus of Nazareth as He entered Jerusalem were only on their lips and were not in their hearts.
APPLICATION
Any given week in services there are most certainly these people here. Probably more than I would like to admit. This is the crowd that lives the way they want Monday-Saturday and then shows up to church on Sunday to look the part and sound the part. This is the crowd that comes to church once a month and looks like they will join our church family and seems enthusiastic, but nothing ever comes of it. They are the ones who mark “Interested in Church Membership” on their communication cards, but never do anything about it.
I will be more honest with you than I should… I do not like this group among us and you all grate on my nerves more than being late and more than idiotic motorcycle riders without a helmet weaving in-between traffic. I do not like this group among us because the Roman soldiers among us who are saying: “I don’t know” look at someone like that that think that is what an authentic Christian is. The Pharisee-type person among us who says: “We hate this guy” gets some of their fuel for their hate from people like this.
To those of you here today who say: “Hosanna, but only for a moment” I offer you the very words of Jesus Christ as a warning:
READ Matthew 7:18-23
“A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. 21 "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' 23 Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'”
WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYWAY: “Hosanna, but only for a moment”
IV. DISCIPLES: “HOSANNA”
The fourth group in the crowd that day is not a hard group to spot. They would have been the ones travelling with Jesus and walking closely with Him. They were the ones walking in the same direction of Jesus. They were the ones taking His lead on purpose. As Jesus entered into the city, crowds of people shouted 3 different things according to John 12 and the disciples would have joined in and meant wholeheartedly every word they said:
* “Hosanna!” means “Save” in which the crowds were asking Jesus to save them in as many ways as possible.
* “Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord!” means they understood clearly that Jesus was God’s representative and all His teachings, His miracles, His parables, and His daily life was an extension of God the Father.
* “Blessed is the King of Israel!” means they understood Jesus to be the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy.
The line of the disciples was: “Hosanna.” They meant this word with every fiber of their being. They would soon come to understand that Jesus of Nazareth would die for their sins on the cross. He would be beaten for them. He would suffer for them. He would take on their sins and forgive them by dying for them. These disciples were in the last week of being with their Master.
APPLICATION
Any given week in services there are most certainly these people here. I would like to think that it is the majority of people who attend weekly. We gather because we understand and believe that we have done wrong in the divine holy sight of God and we are in need of a Savior. We gather because we understand that Jesus Christ was the plan for all people to come back to God and be forgiven and saved. Why are we here? Because we are saved.
We gather here at NBCC weekly because we want every member to be in an active authentic relationship with God reaching out to bring others to Him. We value correct Biblical teaching which leads to an authentic relationship with God. We value a family atmosphere which connects people to one another. We value permanent life change which spreads to others in our spheres of influence. Why are we here? Because we want to save others?
WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYWAY: “Hosanna”
CONCLUSION
