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31. The Hour Has Come: John 12
Episode 31 • 28th February 2025 • Stories of a Faithful God: Bible Stories For All • Dave Whittingham
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The central moment in all of history has arrived. Even as he is hailed as king, Jesus prepares for death. How people respond to Jesus is a matter of life or death. Jesus understands the time he's in, but will everyone else. Join Dave as he explores John chapter 12 and discover the urgency of the moment we live in.

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Transcripts

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G'day

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and welcome to Stories of a Faithful God.

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I'm Dave Whittingham.

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Today we're launching into the second-half

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of John's Gospel.

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We covered the first half last year.

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Before we get into it though,

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let me ask you a question.

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What are the key moments in your life?

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What would you pick as those key turning

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points, the crucial times that set your

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future direction?

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There are ones that most of us share.

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Being born is an easy one,

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probably leaving school.

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Moving out of home for the first time if

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you've done that.

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Sometimes those key moments are big and

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obvious.

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Sometimes they're not so obvious.

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As I was in my last year of school, I was

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having a chat with someone at church about

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my future plans.

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I told them I was going to train as a

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primary school teacher.

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They said, well, you should teach Sunday

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school then.

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Go and have a chat to Janice, who's in

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charge of the Sunday school team.

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I didn't know then

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that she was telling me to go and meet my

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future wife.

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There are moments in our lives that at the

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time look tiny,

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but are actually crucial to our future

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direction.

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So what happens

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if we miss those moments?

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If we don't see them as important?

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If we don't act at the right time and then

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miss out?

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Our whole lives could go hurtling in a

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completely different direction.

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In today's story,

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Jesus doesn't miss his moment.

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He understands the time perfectly.

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He sees what's happening and what he needs

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to do with crystal clear

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20/20 vision.

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And he urges us to see as clearly as he does.

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And so,

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I present to you our next episode

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of Stories of a Faithful God.

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At the end of our last series,

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we'd reached a crucial moment in the

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ministry of Jesus.

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Jesus has been performing signs, proving

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who he is,

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proving that he's God in the flesh,

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that he's the King of the world.

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It's crucial for people to understand

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Jesus' identity,

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because by believing in him, the real Jesus,

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Jesus as he truly is,

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we receive eternal life.

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And so Jesus has been performing these

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signs pointing to who He is.

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In the first half of the Gospel,

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John tells us about seven signs in

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particular.

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The most dramatic has just happened in

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chapter 11,

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where Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead.

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If you want proof that Jesus has power over

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life and death,

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proof that He really is the one who can

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give you eternal life,

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proof that He carries the same authority

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that's only held by the one true God,

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What more could you ask for?

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For many,

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the answer was nothing.

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They saw or heard about the sign, and they

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believed in the one the sign pointed to.

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For others, though,

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it had completely the opposite effect.

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For the Jewish Sanhedrin, the ruling

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council,

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it stiffened their resolve to destroy Jesus.

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If that seems strange, we'll actually get

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an explanation of what's going on for them

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later in today's story.

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All this had come to a head as the Jewish

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Passover approaches.

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Two Passovers have already happened in the

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gospel.

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In the first one, Jesus went up to

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Jerusalem as an unknown,

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but he made a big splash when he cleared

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the temple of people who were abusing it.

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During the argument that followed,

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Jesus alluded to another sign,

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a sign that approved his authority over

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God's temple,

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a sign we haven't seen yet.

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People asked him for a sign and he replied

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in chapter 2 verse 19,

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Destroy this temple and I will raise it up

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in three days.

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Then we're told that Jesus wasn't talking

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about the brick and mortar temple.

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He was talking about his own body.

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At Jesus' second Passover,

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he didn't go to Jerusalem.

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Instead, people traveled out to see him

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and he miraculously fed thousands of people

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with five loaves and two fish.

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When Jesus explained that knowing him was

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far more important than a hearty meal,

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though,

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most people lost interest and walked away.

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Jesus asked his twelve disciples if they

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wanted to leave along with the crowd, and

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Peter gave this brilliant answer in chapter

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6 verse 68:

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Lord,

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to whom will we go?

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You have the words of eternal life.

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We have come to believe and know that you

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are the Holy One of God.

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When you found the guy who can give you

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eternal life,

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why would you settle for anything less?

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Well, now it's time for the third Passover,

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a time when the population of Jerusalem

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generally swells by anywhere from

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150,000 people to more than a million

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people.

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And the question that's running through the

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conversations of all these people is,

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is Jesus going to come? Will he turn up?

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Will we get to see him?

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The chief priests and Pharisees have given

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orders that if anyone does see him,

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they need to report him.

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Jesus has been hiding out for a little while.

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He's both

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a wanted criminal

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and a huge popular celebrity.

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So what's he going to do?

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Six days before the Passover begins,

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Jesus arrives at Bethany.

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Bethany's only about an hour's walk from

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the gates of Jerusalem,

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just up over the Mount of Olives.

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It's also the place where Lazarus lives,

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with his sisters, Mary and Martha.

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Lazarus, of course, is the one who Jesus

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raised from the dead.

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Naturally,

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there's no more honored guest that this

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family could have visit.

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It's hard to imagine just how thankful they

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must be.

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They prepare a special meal to celebrate

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Jesus' arrival.

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Martha's busy serving the dinner.

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Lazarus is reclining at the table with Jesus.

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How's that for a remarkable picture?

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The one who was raised from the dead,

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and the one who raised him from the dead,

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lying back sharing a meal together.

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Then Mary does something astonishing.

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She takes a pound of perfume, about half a litre.

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Just think about the tiny bottles they sell

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perfume in these days, and you'll get an

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idea of how extravagant this is.

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The perfume itself is pure nard,

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a product that's been imported to the Roman

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Empire from northern India,

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again showing that what Mary's about to do

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is incredibly extravagant.

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She takes the perfume and uses it to anoint

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Jesus' feet.

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She pours it all out on Jesus' feet.

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Then, as if that's not a big enough show of

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affection,

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she lets down her hair

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and wipes his feet with it.

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This isn't a sexual thing.

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Foot cleaning was usually the dirty job of

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a slave or servant.

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Mary is showing her

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utter devotion to Jesus.

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She gives him her wealth, she gives him her

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dignity, she gives him her service.

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Jesus did the most wonderful thing for her

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and her family in restoring Lazarus to them,

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and Mary wants to publicly acknowledge just

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how thankful she is.

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John, the author of the gospel and an

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eyewitness who is actually there in the

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room at the dinner,

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Gives us this lovely detail in verse three:

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He says,

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So the house was filled with the fragrance

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of the perfume.

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In the midst of this beautiful, fragrant scene,

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a dark cloud suddenly hangs over the group,

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a voice of righteous indignation from one

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of the disciples,

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none other than Judas Iscariot.

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And I just checked before, but

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every single time that Judas Iscariot is

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mentioned in the Gospels,

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The authors tell us that he's the one who

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betrays Jesus.

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When his betrayal is being described, then

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it's pretty obvious, but when he's

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mentioned at some other time, like here,

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the authors go out of their way to tell you

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exactly what he's done.

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So John tells us in verse 4,

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Then one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot,

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who was about to betray him,

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said,

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Why hasn't this perfume sold for 300

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denarii and given to the poor?

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Now,

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Far be it from me to side with the betrayer

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of Jesus.

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And yet,

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it feels a little bit like he's got a

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point, right?

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I mean, 300 denarii,

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a Roman soldier,

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was paid 200 denarii a year.

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So this is a small fortune.

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And in an instant,

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Mary's poured this small fortune on Jesus' feet.

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Did she really have to use that much?

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Couldn't she have just shown her devotion

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use less

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and sold the rest and given it to the poor?

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Wouldn't that be kind? Wouldn't that be

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loving?

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It feels like a weighty argument,

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even if it is from Judas, the guy who's

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about to betray Jesus.

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Before we get to Jesus' response,

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John wants us to know that

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Judas isn't as righteous as he sounds.

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His motives aren't all that pure.

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John tells us in verse 6,

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He didn't say this because he cared about

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the poor,

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but because he was a thief.

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He was in charge of the money bag and would

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steal part of what he put in it.

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If Mary had sold the perfume and pulled the

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money for distribution,

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who'd be looking after that money?

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Judas.

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It's so easy to make a righteous-sounding

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argument,

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but have evil motives.

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Jesus doesn't address the heart motivation

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of Judas's comment,

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but he does respond to the comment itself.

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His reply is about understanding the times.

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He tells the group that something's about

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to happen that's so momentous,

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so history-making,

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that means that what Mary's done is totally

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appropriate.

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If the disciples understood what time

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they're in,

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her gesture would make complete sense.

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He tells Judas in verse 7,

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Leave her alone.

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She has kept it for the day of my burial,

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for you always have the poor with you,

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but you do not always have me.

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Mary might be thinking,

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Um,

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for your burial? No,

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no, that's not what I kept it for.

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You may not have noticed Jesus, but you're

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still alive.

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It seems highly unlikely that Mary really

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understands what Jesus is about to go

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through.

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Instead,

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there's something bigger in her act of love

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and devotion than even she realizes.

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Her pouring out the oil on Jesus is more

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appropriate than she could have imagined.

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Jesus knows he's not going to be around

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much longer.

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He knows that the time when people will

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prepare his body for burial is almost here.

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It seems ironic that

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as Jesus reclines at the table with

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Lazarus,

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the living proof that he has power over

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life and death,

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the man who he first met while he was

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wrapped up for burial lying in a tomb.

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It's strange that with Lazarus next to him,

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Jesus is talking about his own death now.

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It's almost like he's about to take

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Lazarus's place in the tomb.

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Jesus' statement seems ominous,

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saying that he's about to leave them, about

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to be buried.

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It seems at odds with Jesus' power and

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prestige.

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And yet,

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as they'll realize later,

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his words are highly appropriate for this

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moment in time.

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News spreads that Jesus is in Bethany, and

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people flock to see him.

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They don't just come to see him though,

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they also want to see Lazarus, the man

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they've heard about being raised from the

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dead by Jesus.

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In the minds of the chief priests, this is

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terrible.

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They come up with a plan to kill Lazarus as well.

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They want to destroy the evidence in favor

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of Jesus.

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It shows the foolishness of their position.

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There's this guy with the power of life and death,

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and we think we can kill him.

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Oh, and there's this guy who's actually

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already died, but who's been raised from

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the dead.

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We need to kill him as well.

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This is madness.

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It's blindness.

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If you've been shown categorically that you

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are wrong about someone,

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the correct response shouldn't be to get

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rid of the evidence.

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They should acknowledge who Jesus really is.

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they're so blinded by

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jealousy though that

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they can't see what they're doing

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John tells us in verse 10

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the chief priests had decided to kill

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Lazarus also

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because he was the reason many of the Jews

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were deserting them

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and believing in Jesus

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just like Judas

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they say they have good motives protecting

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the honor of God protecting the Jewish

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nation from the Romans

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protecting the truth

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but actually

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They're just jealous.

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The next day, a

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rumor flies around the crowds of people who

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have come to Jerusalem for Passover.

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Jesus is coming! Jesus is coming!

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They grab palm branches.

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Palm branches had become the national

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symbol of Judah.

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You wave them in times of celebration and

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victory.

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They take the palm branches and spread out

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along the road from Jerusalem to Bethany.

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As they go, they're shouting the words of

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Psalm 118,

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a psalm that celebrates how God saved his people

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and asks for him to come and help them again.

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Hosanna, which they're going to sing,

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literally means give salvation now. And

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they quote a section that both

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asks for salvation

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and rejoices in the one that God sent to

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give it.

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In verse 13, we're told that they kept

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shouting,

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Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the

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name of the Lord,

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the King of Israel!

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The people are pretty explicit about who

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they think Jesus is.

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He's the Savior King promised from long ago.

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You may remember that back in chapter 6,

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people wanted to come and make Jesus King

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by force.

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Jesus got away really quickly,

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not because he isn't the King.

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but because their understanding of what it

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means for him to be the king

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was completely wrong.

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For them, it was about nation building and

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making war on the Romans.

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On this occasion,

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Jesus deliberately acts like a king, he

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accepts the title,

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but he undermines the idea of a warrior king.

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He doesn't come in riding on a mighty

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warhorse,

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instead he comes in riding on a donkey.

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He hasn't come to make war.

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He's come to bring peace.

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You can tell that especially from the fact

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that Jesus is fulfilling an Old Testament

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prophecy.

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John tells us that Jesus is fulfilling

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Zechariah 9 verse 9

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and paraphrases it, saying,

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Do not be afraid, daughter of Zion.

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Look, your king is coming, sitting on a

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donkey's colt.

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So Jesus

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is the king.

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But what sort of king is he?

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Well, he is not just a king for Israel.

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He is not just a nationalistic king.

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He is Israel's king, but his rule is

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actually over the whole world.

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Zechariah tells us he is going to bring

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universal peace

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because he will have universal rule.

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There will be no more war where this king rules

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and he rules everywhere.

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Let me read it to you.

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This is Zechariah 9 verses 9 and 10.

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Rejoice greatly, daughter Zion, shout in

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triumph, daughter Jerusalem.

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Look, your king is coming to you, he is

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righteous and victorious,

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humble and riding on a donkey,

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on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

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I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and

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the horse from Jerusalem.

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The bow of war will be removed, and he will

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proclaim peace to the nations.

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His dominion will extend from sea to sea,

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from the Euphrates River

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to the ends of the earth.

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As the disciples are watching all this,

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they're not thinking, Wow, this is just

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like what Zechariah said would happen.

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John's actually really upfront about his

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own ignorance.

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He says,

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We didn't get it at the time.

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It didn't make sense to us.

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Sometimes you can't really make sense of a

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puzzle until you have all the pieces.

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So John says in verse 16,

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His disciples did not understand these

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things at first.

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However, when Jesus was glorified,

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then they remembered that these things had

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been written about Him,

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and that they had done these things to Him.

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Glory is coming for Jesus,

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and that is when understanding will come

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for the disciples.

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If you think that Jesus riding into

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Jerusalem with all these people cheering

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and waving is glorious,

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you ain't seen nothing yet.

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Meanwhile,

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There are people in the crowd with some news,

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and they can't keep it to themselves.

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You can imagine one of them saying,

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I was there, you know,

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and 10 people around him suddenly stop

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shouting and huddle in.

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You were there? What did you see? Did it

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really happen like they say it happened?

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And the first person replies,

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I tell you the absolute truth.

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We rolled away the stone in front of the tomb.

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Jesus called Lazarus to come out, and out

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he came.

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and the ten people around him let out a

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really satisfying,

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Oh!

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John tells us in verse 17,

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Meanwhile the crowd, which had been with

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him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb

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and raised him from the dead,

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continued to testify.

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This is also why the crowd met him, because

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they heard that he had done this sign.

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The Pharisees, it's fair to say,

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are not having a good day.

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In their minds, the plans locked in to kill Jesus.

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They have commanded people to report to

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them if they see Jesus.

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And yet here's this fugitive

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riding openly towards Jerusalem,

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with thousands upon thousands of people

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cheering and waving palm branches and

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hailing him as king.

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Things don't seem to be going according to plan.

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They say to one another in verse 19.

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You see, you've accomplished nothing.

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Look, the world has gone after him.

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They're actually saying more than they

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understand,

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because having the world come after the king

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is exactly what you'd expect from

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Zechariah,

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the universal king

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with universal rule.

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But of course, it's just an exaggeration,

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isn't it?

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They don't actually mean that people from

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all over the world are coming to see Jesus.

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The Pharisees are just using flowery

522

::

language,

523

::

except

524

::

in the very next scene,

525

::

some representatives of the world

526

::

do come to see Jesus.

527

::

And suddenly,

528

::

the moment that Jesus' whole life and

529

::

ministry,

530

::

and indeed the whole of history has been

531

::

heading towards,

532

::

suddenly

533

::

arrives.

534

::

People travel from all over the place to

535

::

worship at the Passover festival,

536

::

not just from Judea and Galilee.

537

::

but far beyond as well.

538

::

It'd feel like the world is gathering to

539

::

Jerusalem.

540

::

Now though,

541

::

the world goes to Jesus.

542

::

Some Greeks are there, and

543

::

they're really keen to meet Jesus.

544

::

We get a sort of reversal of what happened

545

::

in chapter one,

546

::

when new disciples went out and got their

547

::

friends saying,

548

::

Come and meet this guy Jesus.

549

::

This time,

550

::

these Greeks already want to meet him.

551

::

Verse twenty-one says, So they came to

552

::

Philip,

553

::

who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and

554

::

requested of him, 'Sir,

555

::

we want to see Jesus.'

556

::

Philip went and told Andrew, then Andrew

557

::

and Philip

558

::

went and told Jesus.

559

::

One of the key features we've seen in

560

::

John's Gospel

561

::

is when Jesus gets asked a particular

562

::

question and then gives an answer that

563

::

seems to have nothing to do with what they asked.

564

::

When it happens,

565

::

you know you're going to learn something

566

::

really important.

567

::

And this is one of those situations.

568

::

Jesus has just been asked if these Greeks

569

::

can come and see him.

570

::

You'd think it's a straightforward yes or

571

::

no question.

572

::

But Jesus has something much bigger in mind.

573

::

Remember, he's identified himself as the

574

::

king who Zechariah spoke about,

575

::

the king who'd rule the whole world.

576

::

Earlier in the gospel, he's identified

577

::

himself with the God of the Old Testament.

578

::

So when the king who's going to rule the world

579

::

and the God who owns the world

580

::

has the world coming to Him,

581

::

what should you expect to happen?

582

::

Well, you can read about it in the very

583

::

last chapter of Isaiah.

584

::

Isaiah chapter 66, verse 18.

585

::

Listen to what the people of the world are

586

::

going to see.

587

::

This is God speaking.

588

::

He says,

589

::

Knowing their works and their thoughts,

590

::

I have come to gather all nations and

591

::

languages.

592

::

They will come

593

::

and see my glory.

594

::

God will gather the world to display his

595

::

glory, his greatness.

596

::

And so when Greeks come and ask to see

597

::

Jesus, this is what he says in verse 23,

598

::

the hour has come

599

::

for the Son of Man

600

::

to be glorified.

601

::

This is it.

602

::

This is the moment.

603

::

This is when Jesus' glory will be on full

604

::

display for all the world to see.

605

::

But they won't see it in the way they might

606

::

expect.

607

::

People expect to see the King's glory in

608

::

power and strength.

609

::

Jesus expects to show his glory through his death.

610

::

He says in verse 24,

611

::

Truly I tell you,

612

::

unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground

613

::

and dies,

614

::

it remains by itself.

615

::

But if it dies,

616

::

it produces much fruit.

617

::

It's such a simple picture, isn't it?

618

::

How did all that wonderful life come about?

619

::

Through the death of the seed.

620

::

In this moment, the central event of all of

621

::

history,

622

::

Jesus is offering His death

623

::

to produce a wonderful harvest of life.

624

::

But He isn't just talking about

625

::

His own death.

626

::

In case you think that Jesus does all the

627

::

hard part and then life is easy for His

628

::

followers,

629

::

think again.

630

::

Sure, Jesus takes the punishment for the

631

::

sin of everyone who trusts Him.

632

::

He does things in His death that means that

633

::

we don't have to face them.

634

::

And yet at the same time,

635

::

followers need to follow.

636

::

Jesus understands the moment, the hour he's in.

637

::

We need to understand the moment we're in.

638

::

Jesus explains that this life you have

639

::

right now,

640

::

that's not the life you need to live for.

641

::

This life is coming to an end.

642

::

You can make this life

643

::

easy if you just love whatever the sinful

644

::

world loves, say whatever the sinful world says,

645

::

think whatever the sinful world thinks.

646

::

If Jesus had done that, he never would have

647

::

been crucified.

648

::

But if you follow the sinful world in this life,

649

::

that'll lead to the consequence of sin,

650

::

death and eternal judgment.

651

::

If you side with Jesus, though, if you

652

::

follow him in his loves and words and

653

::

thoughts and actions,

654

::

The world will hate you

655

::

like they hated Jesus,

656

::

but God will honor you for it.

657

::

You may lose this life,

658

::

but you'll gain eternal life.

659

::

Jesus says in verse 25,

660

::

The one who loves his life will lose it,

661

::

and the one who hates his life in this world

662

::

will keep it for eternal life.

663

::

If anyone serves me, he must follow me.

664

::

Where I am, there my servant also will be.

665

::

If anyone serves me,

666

::

the Father will honor him.

667

::

Of course, the Father honoring us doesn't

668

::

make life easy.

669

::

And if it's hard for us, how much harder is

670

::

it for Jesus,

671

::

who faces judgment so we don't have to?

672

::

And it would be so easy.

673

::

So easy for Jesus to say to his father,

674

::

Father,

675

::

please don't make me go through this,

676

::

please rescue me, please save me.

677

::

He doesn't though,

678

::

because he understands the moment he's in.

679

::

He understands that this moment is the very

680

::

reason he's here.

681

::

He says in verse 27,

682

::

Now my soul is troubled.

683

::

What should I say, Father, save me from

684

::

this hour?

685

::

But that is why I came to this hour.

686

::

Father,

687

::

glorify your name.

688

::

Then a voice came from heaven, I have

689

::

glorified it,

690

::

and I will glorify it again.

691

::

Interesting that Jesus doesn't say he

692

::

glorify my name.

693

::

He said before that the hour has come for

694

::

the Son of Man to be glorified, for him to

695

::

be glorified.

696

::

But that isn't his prayer, that isn't his

697

::

end goal.

698

::

His glorification is a means to the end of

699

::

having his Father glorified.

700

::

And he's willing to suffer torment and

701

::

shame and death for that end.

702

::

He wants the whole world to see that his

703

::

Father is good and loving and just and fair

704

::

and great.

705

::

That's good for the world to see his glory.

706

::

And the Father agrees.

707

::

He says about his name, I have glorified it

708

::

and I will glorify it again.

709

::

Don't be fooled into thinking that the

710

::

cross is easy for the Father,

711

::

that Jesus has all the pain and the Father

712

::

gets all the glory.

713

::

No, giving Jesus over to the cross is the

714

::

greatest act of painful love in all the

715

::

universe.

716

::

John 3:16 says,

717

::

For God loved the world in this way.

718

::

He gave His one and only Son,

719

::

so that everyone who believes in Him will

720

::

not perish but have eternal life.

721

::

So what's going to be seen to be glorious

722

::

about God at the cross?

723

::

His astounding love

724

::

in the excruciatingly painful gift

725

::

of his Son

726

::

in order to give his enemies

727

::

eternal life

728

::

his enemies who think he's mean and cruel

729

::

and horrible

730

::

God's working to show the world his glory

731

::

and what we'll see that's glorious about him

732

::

is his love.

733

::

The people standing around Jesus have heard

734

::

this massive voice booming from the sky and

735

::

they're like,

736

::

Was that thunder?

737

::

Others were like, Nah, man, an angel spoke to him.

738

::

They're totally confused.

739

::

They have no idea what moment of time

740

::

they're in,

741

::

which is heartbreaking.

742

::

Because Jesus says to them in verse 30,

743

::

This voice came not for me, but for you.

744

::

He wants them to know what's about to

745

::

happen.

746

::

All of history is about to pivot around

747

::

this event.

748

::

He says,

749

::

Now is the judgment of this world.

750

::

Now the ruler of this world will be cast out.

751

::

As for me, if I am lifted up from the

752

::

earth, I will draw

753

::

all people to myself.

754

::

He said this to indicate what kind of death

755

::

he was about to die.

756

::

It raises an obvious question.

757

::

In this pivotal moment,

758

::

are you going to stand with Jesus, the one

759

::

drawing all people to himself,

760

::

or with the ruler of the world?

761

::

That's Satan.

762

::

It's a funny title for Satan.

763

::

Surely God's the ruler of the world,

764

::

and he is.

765

::

Satan ultimately is subject to God, even as

766

::

he fights against him.

767

::

But when Adam and Eve first sinned,

768

::

They thought they were taking power for

769

::

themselves, gaining independence.

770

::

But by listening to the voice of Satan,

771

::

they came under his power and influence.

772

::

They didn't become free,

773

::

they enslaved themselves to the one who

774

::

wanted to kill them.

775

::

Virtually no one today would say they

776

::

worship Satan, or they're on his side, or

777

::

they're in his kingdom.

778

::

But actually, they're totally under his sway.

779

::

Atheists

780

::

are atheists because Satan doesn't want

781

::

them to believe in God.

782

::

Muslims are Muslims because Satan doesn't

783

::

want them to believe in the one true God.

784

::

Greed and selfishness and pride are

785

::

all ways for Satan to distract people from God.

786

::

But Jesus is saying,

787

::

now's the time for Satan's reign to end.

788

::

Now's the time for people to be truly set free.

789

::

As Jesus spreads out his arms on the cross,

790

::

he'll gather people into his arms to give

791

::

them life and freedom and love.

792

::

Rather than hearing Jesus' words as a call

793

::

to action, a call to stand with him and

794

::

reject sin and Satan,

795

::

the people get caught up on asking who

796

::

Jesus is identifying as.

797

::

In a sense, that's not a bad question.

798

::

John's gospel is all about the identity of Jesus.

799

::

It does feel though like they've been

800

::

distracted from the main point of what

801

::

Jesus is saying here.

802

::

Their question is around titles.

803

::

They think Jesus is the Messiah or Christ,

804

::

the King who God promised to send.

805

::

But he's using this title Son of Man,

806

::

which does come from the Old Testament,

807

::

like the title Messiah, but

808

::

it's a little bit more obscure.

809

::

So they ask in verse 34,

810

::

we have heard from the law that the Messiah

811

::

will remain forever.

812

::

So how can you say the Son of Man must be

813

::

lifted up?

814

::

Who is this Son of Man?

815

::

Jesus had said and done enough to show that

816

::

he is both Messiah and the Son of Man.

817

::

Even if they don't get that,

818

::

even if they only think he's one or the other,

819

::

it should be enough for them to listen to

820

::

what he's saying.

821

::

When the plane's about to crash and you're

822

::

getting instructions from the cockpit,

823

::

you don't have a debate about whether it's

824

::

the pilot or the copilot speaking.

825

::

You don't say, Wait,

826

::

I thought that we're meant to be landing in Paris.

827

::

What do you mean we're diverting to London?

828

::

You listen to the instructions,

829

::

because the moment you're in demands that

830

::

you listen very carefully,

831

::

especially when time's running out.

832

::

And time is running out for these people

833

::

listening to Jesus.

834

::

They've had three years of experiencing

835

::

Jesus' ministry,

836

::

and it's about to come to an end with a

837

::

sudden bang.

838

::

Like if you are walking next to a cliff on

839

::

a dark night

840

::

and your torch battery suddenly dies,

841

::

Jesus says to them in verse 35,

842

::

The light will be with you only a little

843

::

longer.

844

::

Walk while you have the light,

845

::

so that darkness doesn't overtake you.

846

::

The one who walks in darkness doesn't know

847

::

where he's going.

848

::

While you have the light, believe in the light,

849

::

so that you may become children of light.

850

::

Jesus said this.

851

::

then went away

852

::

and hid from them.

853

::

And that's it!

854

::

Bang!

855

::

The end of Jesus' public ministry!

856

::

And how they respond to Jesus,

857

::

how we respond to Him,

858

::

is a matter of life

859

::

or death,

860

::

light or dark, truth or lies.

861

::

It isn't time for wavering.

862

::

Will you walk in the light that only Jesus

863

::

can bring?

864

::

Or will you stay in the dark?

865

::

So, as Jesus' ministry comes to a close,

866

::

how have people responded to Him?

867

::

to all the signs pointing to who he is, all

868

::

the words of truth and grace,

869

::

all the light shed into the darkness.

870

::

Well, John sums it up,

871

::

and it's not very positive.

872

::

He says in verse 37,

873

::

even though he'd performed so many signs in

874

::

their presence, they did not believe in him.

875

::

Huh.

876

::

OK,

877

::

what a letdown.

878

::

Why? Why don't they believe?

879

::

Has Jesus not done enough? Has he not been

880

::

clear enough? Has he not helped them

881

::

enough?

882

::

No.

883

::

Actually,

884

::

this was God's plan all along.

885

::

He said this would happen.

886

::

Jesus said before that it's a time of

887

::

judgment,

888

::

and the judgment comes by having the truth

889

::

right there in front of them,

890

::

but being hardened so they don't accept it.

891

::

That's what happened back in Isaiah's day,

892

::

750 years before.

893

::

and it is happening even more now.

894

::

John tells us in verse 39,

895

::

This is why they were unable to believe,

896

::

because Isaiah also said he has blinded

897

::

their eyes

898

::

and hardened their hearts

899

::

so that they would not see with their eyes

900

::

or understand with their hearts and turn

901

::

and I would heal them.

902

::

God has blinded their eyes.

903

::

He's hardened their hearts, just like he

904

::

did to Pharaoh back in Egypt.

905

::

This is the warning people like to think

906

::

that they can make any decision they want

907

::

at any time they want.

908

::

But when God says your time is up,

909

::

there's nothing you can do.

910

::

Even when the truth is staring you in the

911

::

face, you won't see it,

912

::

because you've come under God's judgment.

913

::

It's why the Sanhedrin said Jesus is a

914

::

liar, we need to kill him.

915

::

Oh wait,

916

::

he's just raised someone from the dead.

917

::

Well let's just kill that person too.

918

::

There's a sort of madness to it

919

::

and that madness is a consequence

920

::

for their ongoing rejection of God.

921

::

It's his judgment on them.

922

::

God has allowed some people to believe

923

::

though,

924

::

even some of the rulers believe in Jesus,

925

::

but their belief is weak.

926

::

It's fearful, or fearful of the wrong thing.

927

::

They don't fear God and his judgment,

928

::

they fear people.

929

::

John says in verse 42,

930

::

Many did believe in him, even among the

931

::

rulers,

932

::

but because of the Pharisees they did not

933

::

confess him,

934

::

so they would not be banned from the

935

::

synagogue,

936

::

for they loved human praise more than

937

::

praise from God.

938

::

Hard to know what all that means in the end.

939

::

Is their belief real belief? Is it a

940

::

genuine trust in Jesus?

941

::

Or is it just mentally acknowledging who

942

::

Jesus is?

943

::

Jesus said before what it means to follow

944

::

him or not follow him.

945

::

He said, The one who loves his life will

946

::

lose it, and the one who hates his life in

947

::

this world will keep it for eternal life.

948

::

If anyone serves me, he must follow me.

949

::

Where I am,

950

::

there my servant also will be.

951

::

If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

952

::

It's like these people are trying to have

953

::

it both ways,

954

::

belief

955

::

and human praise,

956

::

but they can't.

957

::

You can either chase human praise

958

::

or honor from God.

959

::

As a final wrap-up,

960

::

we're told one more statement from Jesus,

961

::

a full stop to his public ministry.

962

::

After this,

963

::

we'll only see him ministering to his

964

::

disciples.

965

::

And Jesus lays it all out.

966

::

Make a choice, life or death, light or

967

::

darkness,

968

::

judgment or salvation.

969

::

He's made it clear throughout his ministry,

970

::

will you listen?

971

::

Will you believe? Will you obey?

972

::

Jesus isn't trying to share a self-help

973

::

method that'll work for some and not for

974

::

others.

975

::

He isn't trying to sell you a 10-step guide

976

::

to wisdom.

977

::

He's offering to lift you out of your

978

::

casket, take you out of your grave, and

979

::

breathe life into you that'll last forever.

980

::

Here's his summary statement.

981

::

In verse 44, Jesus cries out,

982

::

The one who believes in me believes not in me,

983

::

but in him who sent me,

984

::

and the one who sees me sees him who sent me.

985

::

I have come as light into the world,

986

::

so that everyone who believes in me would

987

::

not remain in darkness.

988

::

If anyone hears my words and doesn't keep them,

989

::

I do not judge him,

990

::

for I did not come to judge the world but

991

::

to save the world.

992

::

The one who rejects me and doesn't receive

993

::

my sayings has this as his judge.

994

::

The word I have spoken will judge him on

995

::

the last day,

996

::

for I have not spoken on my own,

997

::

but the Father himself who sent me has

998

::

given me a command to say everything I've said.

999

::

I know that his command is eternal life.

1000

::

So the things that I speak,

1001

::

I speak just as the Father has told me.

1002

::

Jesus understood perfectly

1003

::

the moment he was in.

1004

::

Do you understand the moment you're in?

1005

::

It isn't a time to waver or doubt.

1006

::

It isn't a time to give a bit of belief to

1007

::

Jesus, but seek honor from the world.

1008

::

It's the time to throw your lot completely

1009

::

and fully in with Jesus.

1010

::

It may make some things harder in this life,

1011

::

but it will mean life forever in the family

1012

::

of God,

1013

::

with God honoring you for the decision you

1014

::

have made.

1015

::

It will mean an eternity celebrating the

1016

::

wonderful glory of our great God,

1017

::

the God who saves.

1018

::

Back in Jerusalem,

1019

::

Jesus knows his hours come.

1020

::

He knows that the cross is imminent

1021

::

before he goes there.

1022

::

He's going to sit down with his disciples

1023

::

and prepare them for what's ahead.

1024

::

But that's a story

1025

::

for next time.

1026

::

Thanks everyone for listening.

1027

::

I hope you found it helpful.

1028

::

If you want to help others with the same

1029

::

thing, I'd love it if you can hit the

1030

::

five-star rating in your listening app of

1031

::

choice.

1032

::

That would be a huge help.

1033

::

Also, why not hit the share button and post

1034

::

this episode on social media?

1035

::

Keep trusting Jesus.

1036

::

Bye for now.

1037

::

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