Triumphal Obedience

John 12:12-36

Next Step Testimony

This is just about what God is working in and on me now. My next step of the moment is learning how God’s power is made perfect in my weakness. 2 Cor. 12:9-10, “my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

God is working on teaching me how that actually works. Not me pretending to be weak. Actual weakness, like a thorn in my flesh, knowing that I am less than I hoped, weaker than I thought… and that God somehow makes his power perfect in that.

God is most powerfully teaching me through this. Leading in the midst of my brokenness, praying that God uses my weakness to do powerful things, even perfect things, in and for you. So… keep me posted on that. I already know this, he blesses and he loves and he continues to heal me through this church.

But I hold on to the knowledge of my weakness, the “end of myself.” “For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

Monkey Trap

Video of monkey trap. Baboon reaches into a whole to grab the treat, grabs the treat, but now the hand is too big to get out of the hole. Baboon is trapped and caught.

The Moral of the Story: when you need to catch a monkey, find an anthill!

To hold on to something so tightly that it ends up costing everything else. I bet most of us have a story where we are the monkey, holding on to something way too hard for way too long. Held on to a prized possession, a car, a job, a relationship, a baseball card collection from the 90s. (It’ll be worth something someday, yes?) Because perseverance is good right? Strength of will? It is… except when it’s not. Isn’t that helpful?

If the Baboon just opened his hand. If he held his treasure loosely, he would still have his life.

This morning we see why a Baboon at an anthill should be like a King on a donkey.

Triumphal Entry

John 12:12-19

12 The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” 14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,

15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion;

behold, your king is coming,

sitting on a donkey's colt!”

Now this is purposefully ridiculous image. Contrast this with the conquering general. The large crowd coming to town, streaming into Jerusalem from all over the Diaspora, mostly Jews scattered making their pilgrimage to Jerusalem for Passover. The Jewish historian Josephus claimed over 2 million people attended on Passover. And the people behind, we read in the Synoptic gospels, they are eager to see Jesus having seen all his miraculous works in Galilee. And the people in Jerusalem are waiting in eager anticipation, having not only heard about the resurrection of Lazarus, but many having seen Lazarus walking and talking.

Now Jesus comes in, the Messianic figure, the glorious conquering king, mounted on a battle steed. The conquering hero, ready to rouse the people to revolution, lead the rebellion, and the gathered millions of people ready to free Israel from the yoke of Rome. The small garrisons of Roman armies would have no chance.

What would then stop Jesus from leading that army, along with his powerful teaching of the Kingdom of God, to establish that Kingdom then and there. Jerusalem as the seat of power instead of Rome, and every nation on earth and under the earth under the rule of the Son of God.

To me, this is the most plausible next step in the story. This is how the adventure goes. Jesus waits until the right time, sure, but this is surely the right time. There will never be more people to here and see and follow, never more fervor, never more passion.

The palm leaves they took, this is the national symbol of Israel since the Maccabean revolution. There are palm trees everywhere, so this is the equivalent of waving the stars and stripes on the 4th of July. Passover is the day of freedom from Egypt, how fitting for it to be the day of freedom from Rome.

I think of Les Miserables and waving those flags on the barricades… “Do you hear the people sing, singing the song of angry men, it is the music of a people who will not be slaves again…”

What could have been. But Jesus, just as prophesy says he would, deliberately subverts this image. He doesn’t ride in as conquering hero. He doesn’t even stride in confidently. He rides a donkey. Nobody conquers Rome riding a donkey. A ruler who would ride a donkey, and others did in the Bible, including Solomon, is deliberately signifying that they come in peace. They come in peace. Jesus symbolically, and through the power of the image I think this communicated effectively to all these crowds, that he simply would not be the conquering political Messiah so many wanted him to be.

16 His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him. 17 The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. 18 The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.”

Again, the Pharisees, and the other religious leaders, they see that there is only one solution to the Jesus problem, to kill him.

But among all these Jewish people are people called “the Greeks”. Now because they are not called proselytes, it is likely that these are not just Jewish people who speak Greek, or Greeks who have converted to Judaism, but full on Gentiles who are in Jerusalem because any gathering of 2+ million people is an opportunity for tourism and trade. So these Gentiles start asking about Jesus, and it triggers something in Jesus.

Absolute Obedience

John 12:20-26

20 Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. 21 So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. 23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

The Gentiles are asking?... the hour has come. This is the moment. It hasn’t been the moment, but now the moment is here. And it is Palm Sunday which famously begins the week of the Passion. Jesus will go to the cross in days and by this time next week, the tomb will be empty.

The hour has come.

And now Jesus is going to explain why it has to be this way. Why not the conquering political hero on the battle steed leading all these millions to gory glory?

Because there is a power in the death of Jesus, in his sacrifice, that multiplies out.

24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

A grain of wheat can feed, but if it falls into the earth and dies, it multiplies, it is exponential, it is more powerful. There is power in the coming death of Jesus that simply was not possible, perhaps, even in the life of Jesus.

25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

This isn’t easy for Jesus, this isn’t something he skips up to trivially.

27 “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name.”

We could take this sarcastically, but it parallels so closely the prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, and so, we know it echoes the very sequence of prayer in the heart of Jesus.

Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”

Best prayer feedback!

29 The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.”

They didn’t understand it. This is great insight to when the Bible says “God said…” They didn’t all get it or hear it or know what it was. Some just heard thunder, some, maybe more spiritually attuned or something, thought an angel; perhaps it is only Jesus who hears the words that clearly and then shared it with the disciples later.

30 Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine.

Man did that sound strange to those who only heard thunder. “Jesus hearing voices in the thunder!”

31 Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. 34 So the crowd answered him, “We have heard from the Law that the Christ remains forever. How can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?” 35 So Jesus said to them, “The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. 36 While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.”

Again and again, Jesus points forward to the cross, preparing his disciples, preparing the people. This is why he has come, he is headed to the cross, the light is leaving, the judgment of the ruler of this world is coming. The cross is the purpose of Jesus incarnation, of his life.

How loosely Jesus was holding his life. Not without purpose, but with incredible single-minded purpose. He held on to his life, but lifted it up to the will of His Father. He held it loosely, knowing it was given for the purpose of giving it away at the will of the Father.

And isn’t that true of my life. And your life. And not only our lives, but this is all encompassing, everything and every aspect and dimension of our lives. Everything that we have and are…

We hold it loosely, knowing that it has been given for the purpose of giving it away. In the Father’s timing, according to his purpose, His will, His way.

We hold it all loosely, knowing that it has been given for the purpose of giving it away.

The application to us is the same kind of obedience… to the same kind of end.

John 12:25-26

25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

Don’t be the monkey! Here Jesus uses a Semitic idiom. He isn’t asking people to actually hate themselves, God made you, he loves you, you should love you too. This is a comparative idiom, it is to say you have such a strong preference for one thing that relatively it is like you hate the other. I love vanilla so much I hate chocolate. Do I hate chocolate? No, it’s just okay.

So Jesus says you must have such a strong preference for eternal life, for the with-me life (and that isn’t just a someday future thing, these are people following Jesus at that exact moment, living the with-Jesus life). You are so for Jesus and eternal life with him that it is as if you hate this life.

But we are usually like the monkey. Holding on so tightly to the treasure that we lose everything of importance. I WANT MELON SEEDS!!! So I will lose my freedom, my baboon family, my true life.

Jesus invites us to hold our life and everything in it loosely… for the purpose of giving it away.

What does this really look like?

Two Millionaires

My Great Uncle Charles was a multi-millionaire. He worked hard and smart, made millions and kept it. Now his grandchildren have millions :D>. Thanksgiving was always fun with those guys. Actually some of the coolest guys in the world, and they all work, but they only work because they want to.

My Grandfather Albyn, Charles’ brother, was an equal partner in the firm Mackintosh and Mackintosh. They both made millions. So where are my millions???

He gave it away. There was a bit of inheritance to help his two sons setup their families… but not millions. He gave it away. All the time. All over the place. He gave money away that no one else will ever know about. He built churches, and bought houses for people, and sent people to college who couldn’t afford college. Traveling across the country as a young adult, elderly people would take me aside, people I had never met, and they would tell me an Albyn story. It usually went like this. I had a need. Albyn quietly took me aside and gave me a check.

He knew this. His life, his money, his gifts and talents, everything he had was given to him for the purpose of giving it away in the Father’s will, way and timing. His responsibility was to be on the lookout for when and where.

He held it all loosely. That man has treasures in heaven. “If anyone serves [Jesus], the Father will honor him.” That’s better than millions here on earth.

Hold it Loosely

It isn’t about what you hold on to, it’s about what you give away.

Jesus, at the very height, the pinnacle, knew he must reject all political power, ride in on a donkey, counting down the days until the sacrifice of his life. He gave his life away.

He told his disciples. If you follow me, you follow me into sacrifice, into death, into giving your life away. Some quickly in dramatic martyrdom, some one moment at a time over the next fifty years.

Let us follow Jesus in that kind of reckless, beautiful life, giving our lives away that we might truly live.

Take your life, all that you have, all that you are, all that you own in your two hands. Squeeze it tight. Lift those hands up to God. And open them up to him. Holding them loosely.

Heavenly Father,

Here’s my life, take it as you will, I place it in your hands. I loosen my grip on it, help me to hold it loosely. Help me to recognize the moments to give and give big. To give sacrificially. Of my time, of my talent, of my treasure. I place it in your hands. Amen.