John 12:12 On the next day a great multitude had come to the feast. When they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, 13 they took the branches of the palm trees and went out to meet him, and cried out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, Psalm 118:25-26 the King of Israel!”
14 Jesus, having found a young donkey, sat on it. As it is written, 15 “Don’t be afraid, daughter of Zion. Behold, your King comes, sitting on a donkey’s colt.” Zechariah 9:9 16 His disciples didn’t 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. 17 The multitude therefore that was with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead was testifying about it. 18 For this cause also the multitude went and met him, because they heard that he had done this sign. 19 The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, “See how you accomplish nothing. Behold, the world has gone after him.”
Over six hundred years before Christ, the prophet Zechariah had prophesied that Christ would ride a donkey into Jerusalem. And over one thousand years before Christ, the Warrior King David had prophesied that Christ would enter Jerusalem to the tune of Psalm 118. And just as it had been prophesied, the people who had witnessed Lazarus raised from the dead gathered for King Jesus’ triumphal entrance into Jerusalem, singing,
The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes.
The Lord has done it this very day;
let us rejoice today and be glad.
Lord, save us!
Lord, grant us success!
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
From the house of the Lord we bless you.
The Lord is God,
and he has made his light shine on us.
With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession
up to the horns of the altar.
You are my God, and I will praise you;
you are my God, and I will exalt you.
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever.
Today, this triumphant procession into Jerusalem is celebrated every year by Christians on Palm Sunday. As Jesus, the light of the world, is riding into Jerusalem the people hail his arrival waving palm fronds and singing the ancient prophecy of David that foretold of this day.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord… He has made his light shine on us…
Give thanks to the Lord for he is good;
His love endures forever.
The Redeemer, first Promised to Adam in Genesis 3:15, at the beginning of time, is riding into Jerusalem to be the Passover Lamb that will be sacrificed to defeat death and Satan. And just as the song predicted,
the Jewish religious leaders continued to reject their Messiah.
The stone the builders rejected
Has become the cornerstone.
John 12:20 Now there were certain Greeks among those who went up to worship at the feast. 21 These, therefore, came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, “Sir, we want to see Jesus.” 22 Philip came and told Andrew, and in turn, Andrew came with Philip, and they told Jesus. 23 Jesus answered them, “The time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Most certainly I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains by itself alone. But if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 He who loves his life will lose it. He who hates his life in this world will keep it to eternal life. 26 If anyone serves me, let him follow me. Where I am, there my servant will also be. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.
27 “Now my soul is troubled. What shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this time?’ But I came to this time for this cause. 28 Father, glorify your name!”
Then a voice came out of the sky, saying, “I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.”
29 Therefore the multitude who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.”
Perhaps hearing of the miracle of raising the dead to life, a group of Greeks who had come to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover sought to meet with Jesus. Jesus, knowing that he would be betrayed and murdered at the Passover, fulfilling all of the Old Covenant “Lamb of God” prophecies spoke saying, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains by itself alone. But if it dies, it bears much fruit. Just as a seed will never become a tree that bears much fruit unless it dies and is buried, the death and burial of Christ is necessary for the Son of Man to be glorified. Only by his death and burial can God’s resurrection power be displayed, the resurrection power that offers life to all who believe in Christ.
Only when we realize that our lives are not our own and freely offer them in service to our Lord, will we bear much fruit. If anyone serves me, let him follow me. Where I am, there my servant will also be. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.
Jesus knew that his mission would require his death:
But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth.
8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? For he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many: for he shall bear their iniquities. Isaiah 53:5-11
Jesus prayed, asking God the Father to save him from his coming torture and death. “Now my soul is troubled. What shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this time?’ But I came to this time for this cause. 28 Father, glorify your name!”
In response, God spoke from heaven in a thundering voice saying: “I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.” According to the Gospel writers, God the Father spoke three times during Jesus’ time on earth. God spoke here. God spoke at Jesus’ baptism, “You are my beloved Son; in you I am well pleased.” Luke 3:22 And God spoke at Jesus’ transfiguration, “This is My beloved Son. Listen to Him.” Jesus came to earth to do the will of God the Father, to redeem fallen mankind, rescuing God’s wayward children from death. By being obedient and carrying out the plan of salvation, God would be glorified throughout all of his creation.
John 12:30 Jesus answered, “This voice hasn’t come for my sake, but for your sakes. 31 Now is the judgment of this world. Now the prince of this world will be cast out. 32 And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 But he said this, signifying by what kind of death he should die. 34 The multitude answered him, “We have heard out of the law that the Christ remains forever. Isaiah 9:7; Daniel 2:44; See Isaiah 53:8. How do you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up?’ Who is this Son of Man?”
Jesus explained that God spoke for the sake of the people so that they would come to appreciate Christ’s mission of salvation in the world. At the dawn of time, Satan successfully tempted our first parents to rebel against the Creator. Since that time, the prince of this world has done his best to steal, kill, and destroy. John 10:10 Christ came to defeat and cast out Satan so that those captive to his deception might be set free. Freedom is now possible through his death and resurrection. Mark 3:27 Revelation 20:2
Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. Colossians 2:15
The thought of Christ being lifted up … in death confused the multitude. They had expected the Messiah to set up an eternal kingdom, Isaiah 9:7, that would never be destroyed, Daniel 2:44. Because Israel was suffering under Roman occupation the people asked, “We have heard out of the law that the Christ remains forever. How do you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up?’ Who is this Son of Man?”
The people were not reading the whole Word of God. They somehow missed the fact that Christ had to be lifted up on the cross, Deuteronomy 21:23, Galatians 3:13-14, to defeat death before he could ascend into heaven and be seated at the right hand of God the Father from which he rules over every power and authority.
“You are my Son; today I have become you Father
Ask me, and I will make the nations your inheritance,
The ends of the earth your possession.
You will break them with a rod of iron,
You will dash them to pieces like pottery.
Psalm 2:8-9
John 12:35 Jesus therefore said to them, “Yet a little while the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, that darkness doesn’t overtake you. He who walks in the darkness doesn’t know where he is going. 36 While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become children of light.” Jesus said these things, and he departed and hid himself from them.
In answering their question Jesus reminds them of his previous teaching when he’d said, “I Am the light of the world. He who follows me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12 With his crucifixion and death only a few days away, Jesus, the light of the world, will only be with them a little while longer. While he is with them they should take advantage of his teaching: believe in the light, that you may become children of the light.
John 12:37 But though he had done so many signs before them, yet they didn’t believe in him, 38 that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke, “Lord, who has believed our report?
To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” Isaiah 53:1
39 For this cause they couldn’t believe, for Isaiah said again,40 “He has blinded their eyes and he hardened their heart,
lest they should see with their eyes,
and perceive with their heart,
and would turn,
and I would heal them.” Isaiah 6:10
41 Isaiah said these things when he saw his glory, and spoke of him. Isaiah 6:1
John explains why many of the people refused to believe that Christ was the Messiah sent from God the Father, by quoting the prophet Isaiah. During his life the prophet Isaiah had actually witnessed the glory of Christ and spoke about him. But the Pharisees, ignoring the prophecy of Isaiah and ignoring Jesus’ many amazing signs…didn’t believe in him. The leaders discounted Jesus’ warning to believe in the light…
Those who trusted in Jesus were able to believe because the Lord had revealed it to them.
God doesn’t force people into sin and then refuse to rescue them from it. However, He sometimes turns a sinner over to his sin, which is the most ghastly judgment any person could ever receive from the hands of God…Due to the rebelliousness of the people, God judged them with the inability to repent even though the message of salvation was being compellingly presented right before their eyes. R.C. Sproul, John: An Expositional Commentary, Ligonier.
John 12:42 Nevertheless even many of the rulers believed in him, but because of the Pharisees they didn’t confess it, so that they wouldn’t be put out of the synagogue, 43 for they loved men’s praise more than God’s praise.
While many refused to believe, nevertheless there were some rulers who secretly believed. Men like Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, John 19:38-39, believed but they were not yet ready to publicly confess their belief for fear of being put out of the synagogue.
What is keeping you from publicly confessing Christ as the Savior?
John 12:44 Jesus cried out and said, “Whoever believes in me, believes not in me, but in him who sent me. 45 He who sees me sees him who sent me. 46 I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in me may not remain in the darkness. 47 If anyone listens to my sayings, and doesn’t believe, I don’t judge him. For I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. 48 He who rejects me, and doesn’t receive my sayings, has one who judges him. The word that I spoke will judge him in the last day. 49 For I spoke not from myself, but the Father who sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. 50 I know that his commandment is eternal life. The things therefore which I speak, even as the Father has said to me, so I speak.”
Returning to his theme of light Jesus reiterated that to believe in him is to believe in God the Father because it was God the Father who sent Jesus. Those who believe in Jesus, the light of the world, will not remain in the darkness.
To change the metaphor, Jesus is the Good Shepherd who personally guides believers through the darkness by the light of God’s truth. Conversely, to reject Jesus is to reject the Father. Jesus reassured everyone that for now, “I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.” But having said that Jesus warns that when he returns to the world, in the last day, he will return to judge those who have chosen to remain in the darkness of their sin rather than accepting the free gift of Christ’s forgiveness.