Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem

John 12:9-19 (NRSV)

9 When the great crowd of the Jews learned that he was there, they came not only because of Jesus but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 10 So the chief priests planned to put Lazarus to death as well, 11 since it was on account of him that many of the Jews were deserting and were believing in Jesus.

Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem

12 The next day the great crowd that had come to the festival heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, shouting,"Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord — the King of Israel!"
14 Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it; as it is written: 15 "Do not be afraid, daughter of Zion. Look, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt!" 16 His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written of him and had been done to him. 17 So the crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to testify. 18 It was also because they heard that he had performed this sign that the crowd went to meet him. 19 The Pharisees then said to one another, "You see, you can do nothing. Look, the world has gone after him!"


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There is a lot going on in this passage: the crowds following Jesus and testifying about the miracle he has just performed in raising Lazarus from the dead; Jesus fulfilling prophecy by entering Jerusalem on a donkey to shouts of "Hosanna!"; the Pharisees plotting to kill Lazarus and complaining of Jesus' following. But in the midst of all this activity two subtle phrases catch my attention.

The first is the first verse of the passage, which tells us that "the large crowd... came, not for Jesus' sake only." This astounds me for how well I can relate. It is astonishing to think how often I come to church or come to prayer or community not for Jesus' sake only, but for what he can do or give: for comfort, for peace, for encouragement. And while these certainly aren't bad things, just like Lazarus' resurrection was not bad, I just don't think they're the point, but they are so often what I seek. I want the sign instead of what the sign points to, to put it in terms of last Sunday's sermon. It makes me wonder how much I'm missing in my life of faith, and to want to learn what it means to come for Jesus' sake only.

The second phrase that catches me is "Fear not." It is almost laughable how often this short phrase appears when God speaks, and how quickly I ignore it and keep on fearing. This world tells me I have a lot to fear - government debt, unemployment, illness, terrorism - but almost every time God speaks to his people, he tells (commands!) us not to fear. For behold, our King is coming! If we could just let the scary distractions of our world slip out of our minds and keep that in focus, how much less we would fear.

It is my prayer this week that we might seek out Jesus for Jesus' sake only, and that in doing so, we would obey when God says, "Fear not."