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If you were able, would you 
please remain standing for the 

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reading of God's Word this 
morning? 

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I'll be reading from the Gospel 
of John, chapter 12, beginning 

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in verse 12. 
The next day the large crowd 

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that had come to the feast heard
that Jesus was coming to 

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Jerusalem. 
They took branches of palm 

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trees, went out to meet him, 
crying out Hosanna. 

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Blessed is he who comes in the 
name of the Lord, even the King 

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of Israel. 
And Jesus found a young donkey 

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and sat on it, just as it is 
written. 

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Fear not, daughter of Zion, 
Behold, your king is coming, 

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sitting on a donkey's colt. 
His disciples did not understand

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these things at first, but when 
Jesus was glorified, then they 

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remembered that these things had
been written about him and had 

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been done to him. 
The crowd that had been with him

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when he called Lazarus out of 
the tomb and raised him from the

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dead continued to bear witness. 
The reason why the crowd went to

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meet him was that they heard he 
had done this sign. 

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So the Pharisees said to one 
another, you see that you are 

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gaining nothing. 
Look, the world has gone after 

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him. 
Now among those who went up to 

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worship at the feast were some 
Greeks. 

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So these came to Philip who who 
was from Basaida in Galilee and 

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asked him, Sir, we wish to see 
Jesus. 

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Philip went and told Andrew. 
Andrew and Philip went and told 

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Jesus, and Jesus answered them. 
The hour has come for the Son of

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Man to be glorified. 
Truly, truly. 

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I say to you, unless a grain of 
wheat falls into the earth and 

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dies, it remains alone. 
But if it dies, it bears much 

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fruit. 
Whoever loves his life loses it.

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Whoever hates his life in this 
world will keep it for eternal 

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life. 
If anyone serves me, he must 

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follow me, and where I am, there
my servant will be also. 

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If anyone serves me, the Father 
will honor him. 

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Now is my soul troubled? 
What shall I say, Father, save 

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me from this hour? 
But for this purpose I've come 

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to this hour. 
Father, glorify your name. 

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Then a voice came from heaven. 
I have glorified it, and I will 

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glorify it again. 
The crowd that stood there and 

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heard it said that it had 
thundered. 

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Others said an Angel and spoken 
to him. 

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

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Now is the judgment of this 
world. 

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Now will the ruler of this world
be cast out, and I, when am 

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lifted up from the earth, will 
draw all people to myself. 

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He said this to show by what 
kind of death he was going to 

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die. 
This is the word of the Lord. 

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You may be seated 1 of the most 
incredible things about the New 

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Testament books of Matthew, Mark
and Luke and John if they give 

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us not just one, but four 
different eyewitness accounts 

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about the life, death, 
resurrection of Jesus. 

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With each gospel, we're given 
not simply a different 

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eyewitness testimony that tells 
us that everything we read here 

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is true, but it also gives us a 
different window, a different 

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vantage point through which to 
behold the person and work of 

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Jesus. 
Several weeks ago on Palm 

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Sunday, we looked at the story 
of the triumphal entry of Jesus 

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into Jerusalem from the Gospel 
of Luke. 

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And this morning we're going to 
look at that exact same story 

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from the Gospel of John. 
Now you might be asking, why are

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we doing that? 
We just made our way through 

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Easter tide. 
We haven't even made it to 

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Pentecost, and we're already 
going back to Palm Sunday. 

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Well, the reason we're doing 
that is not simply to work our 

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way through our series in the 
Gospel of John, but to notice 

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that with every story in the 
Gospels, especially those that 

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are found in all four Gospels, 
it is a right and good thing to 

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compare what we see in one 
gospel to another in order to 

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get a fuller picture of who 
Jesus is and what He came to do.

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If you're with us on Palm 
Sunday, we saw the Gospel of 

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Luke, how Jesus came riding on a
donkey. 

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He did this during the Feast of 
Passover, just like all the 

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other Gospels. 
We see that same story told in 

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the Gospel of John. 
I want you to look with me, John

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12, verse 12. 
John tells us the next day the 

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large crowd that had come to the
feast heard that Jesus was 

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coming to Jerusalem. 
This is the turning point in the

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Gospel of John. 
In many ways, it's the turning 

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point in Jesus's earthly 
ministry. 

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This is the beginning, the final
week of Jesus's life, a week 

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that John will dedicate almost 
half of his gospel to. 

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Verse 13 John tells us So they 
took branches of palm trees and 

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went out to meet him, crying out
Hosanna. 

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Blessed is he who comes in the 
name of the Lord, even the king 

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of Israel, like a triumphant 
king returning from battle. 

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The people gathered there, that 
triumphal entry as Jesus rode 

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into Jerusalem on a donkey 
waving palm branches, symbol of 

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victory. 
They cried out Hosanna, which 

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means save us. 
And they quoted from Psalm 118. 

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They praised Jesus and victory 
as he rode into Jerusalem, but 

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they had no idea what he was 
coming to Jerusalem in order to 

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do. 
And in their misunderstandings 

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and false assumptions about 
Jesus, we will see ourselves. 

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But more than that, in Jesus we 
will see a king who came to lay 

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down his life in order to draw 
all people to himself. 

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So the first thing the Gospel of
John's account of the triumphal 

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entry shows us is this. 
The disciples did not understand

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him. 
Once you look with me, John 12 

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verse 16, John goes on and he 
tells us that his disciples did 

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not understand these things at 
first, but when Jesus was 

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glorified, then they remember 
that these things have been 

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written about him and have been 
done to him. 

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Now this may come at a surprise 
for you, but Jesus's own 

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disciples did not understand 
him. 

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Though they walked with him for 
three years, Though they 

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followed Him as their teacher, 
though they heard Jesus preach 

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and teach, though they saw Jesus
work miracles and signs, they 

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did not understand who he really
was or what he came to do. 

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We see this throughout the 
Gospels. 

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Just after Peter confessed that 
Jesus was the Messiah, he then 

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rebuked Jesus because Jesus told
his disciples that he came to 

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suffer and to die. 
Peter wanted none of that. 

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That wasn't what he thought 
Jesus was, wasn't how he 

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thought. 
Jesus was going to bring 

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salvation, not through 
suffering, not through death. 

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So he rebuked him. 
Peter didn't understand Jesus. 

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Of course. 
We saw last week that Judas 

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didn't understand Jesus. 
All he could see was his own 

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selfishness. 
Eventually he betrayed him. 

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James and John. 
They saw Jesus as king, but they

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wanted to know from Jesus when 
he took the throne on the 

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Kingdom, which one of them would
be the greatest. 

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They too didn't understand 
Jesus. 

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The disciples tried to keep 
children from going to him. 

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They questioned Jesus when he 
suggested that he was going to 

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feed 5000 people. 
The disciples did not fully 

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understand Jesus until after 
Jesus died and rose again. 

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Before. 
You want to be hard on them. 

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I actually don't think it's to 
surprise us at all. 

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See, they couldn't possibly 
fathom that the savour of the 

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world had come to die, that the 
King was going to ride into 

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Jerusalem in humility. 
All of this they couldn't 

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possibly see until after Jesus 
triumphed over the grave. 

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And in that moment their cries 
for victory became fulfilled. 

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John tells us that it was after 
he was glorified that they 

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remembered all that was written 
about him. 

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They begin to connect all the 
dots of the prophets and all 

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that Jesus said and did. 
They remember the words of 

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Zechariah Chapter 9, verse 9. 
Rejoice greatly. 

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O daughter of Zion, shout aloud,
O daughter of Jerusalem, behold,

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your King is coming to you 
righteous and having salvation 

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as he humbled and mounted on a 
donkey, on a colt, the full of a

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donkey. 
They expected a king to come and

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triumph over their earthly 
enemies. 

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They didn't understand that 
Jesus came to conquer an enemy 

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far greater. 
He came to conquer sin and death

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itself. 
So we must ask ourselves, how 

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different are we? 
Do we really understand who 

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Jesus is and what he came to do?
If, like me, you've grown up the

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culturally Christian S, you 
probably grew up going to Sunday

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school and hearing about Jesus. 
You probably grew up raised the 

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church hearing a pastor like me 
preach Sunday to Sunday, maybe 

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even read much of the Bible for 
yourself. 

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But here's my question. 
Do you really understand him? 

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Because for those of us who've 
grown up in a culturally 

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Christian environment, sometimes
we know just enough about him in

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order to misunderstand him. 
Others of us, maybe we didn't 

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grow up in a Christian home, but
growing up in the West, United 

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States of America. 
You've at least heard his name. 

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Maybe even you recognize some of
the stories. 

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Maybe even a popular 1 like 
this, the triumphal entry. 

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And for you, you know, just a 
little. 

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But that little is not just 
simply led to curiosity, but 

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also misunderstanding. 
I want you to know that we've 

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been given all that we need in 
the Word of God. 

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Right there in the palm of your 
hand, you hold a means of God's 

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grace to show you Jesus, to see 
him for who he really is, to see

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the story of redemption from 
Genesis to Revelation to just 

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like the disciples, to look back
on the death of resurrection of 

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Jesus and see how it's the 
fulfilment of every prophecy. 

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And so don't settle for 
vicarious Christianity. 

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What I mean by that is don't 
just come Sunday to Sunday 

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expecting to just hear about 
Jesus without seeing Him for 

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yourself. 
Don't just take my word for it, 

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but study Him. 
Read about Him, see Jesus 

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unfolded in the pages of 
Scripture, and behold Him as 

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your Savior, King. 2nd, we see 
not just the misunderstanding of

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the disciples, but we see that 
the Pharisees were threatened by

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Jesus. 
Look with me at verse 19. 

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John goes on and tells us that 
the Pharisees said to one 

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another. 
You see that you are gaining 

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nothing. 
Look, the world has gone after 

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Him as the Pharisees are seeing 
this parade unfold and Jesus 

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entering into Jerusalem on a 
donkey and the people waving 

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palm branches and shouting 
hosanna, they don't want to join

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with them. 
No, they're threatened. 

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They see their grip on control 
and their hold on the people 

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beginning to wane. 
They're threatened by Jesus's 

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fame and popularity, and so they
cry out in anger and a mockery. 

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Look, the world has gone after 
him. 

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In other words, look at this 
peasant, this king that they're 

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bowing down to. 
Can you believe it? 

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Look how the world's going after
him. 

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We're gaining nothing. 
They're just going to keep doing

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it. 
How can we stop their blindness 

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and their foolishness? 
But you see, what the Pharisees 

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meant out of anger was exactly 
right. 

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The whole world was going after 
Jesus. 

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John goes on in verse 20 and 
tells us, thou among those who 

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went up to worship at the feast 
were some Greeks. 

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Undoubtedly these were some 
Greek Jews who had come to the 

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feast of Pentecost. 
But what I want you to notice is

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that John tells us in verse 21 
that they didn't just come to 

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the feast, but they came to see 
Jesus. 

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These Greeks had heard about 
him. 

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They wanted to know who he was, 
that if the stories were true. 

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So Philip and Andrew go to 
Jesus. 

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They tell him that these Greeks 
had come and Jesus sees this as 

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a sign that it is now finally 
time. 

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His hour has come. 
Once you look with me, verse 22,

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Philip went and told Andrew. 
Andrew and Philip went and told 

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Jesus and Jesus answered them. 
The hour has come for the Son of

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Man to be glorified. 
The Pharisees were threatened. 

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And the truth is, if we're 
honest, Jesus is a threat to us 

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as well. 
You see, the cross of Christ is 

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at once both a threat and 
freedom. 

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It's threatening to us, and it's
liberation. 

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Here's what I mean by that. 
You see, Jesus Christ has come 

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not only as King of the Jews, 
but what we see the triumphal 

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entry is He is King of the whole
world. 

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Listen again to the words the 
Pharisees. 

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Look, the whole world has gone 
after him. 

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He's not just King of the Jews. 
He is King of kings and Lord of 

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Lords, and His Kingdom 
transcends every earthly Kingdom

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but the wonder of the Gospel. 
He's not only brought His 

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Kingdom to bear on the kingdoms 
of this earth, but He's brought 

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His Kingdom to bear to reign and
rule over our hearts. 

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00:16:19,600 --> 00:16:24,160
And every single one of us 
spends every single day trying 

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00:16:24,160 --> 00:16:27,800
to build our own earthly 
kingdoms. 

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00:16:29,800 --> 00:16:36,640
We go through most of our lives 
holding on with tight gripped 

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00:16:36,720 --> 00:16:44,560
fists, grasping for control, 
trying to build our own Kingdom 

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00:16:44,600 --> 00:16:51,040
in our own image. 
For some of you, it's the 

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00:16:51,040 --> 00:16:57,280
Kingdom of business and work and
this thing that God has called 

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00:16:57,280 --> 00:16:59,760
us to, to be fruitful and 
multiply. 

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This thing He's entrusted to us 
to steward. 

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We have held onto so tightly 
that we have choked God 

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00:17:11,040 --> 00:17:15,640
completely out of it. 
And holding on to control, we've

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00:17:15,640 --> 00:17:18,880
bought into the American Dream. 
If we just work hard enough, 

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00:17:19,880 --> 00:17:22,680
we'll achieve everything that 
we've ever wanted. 

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00:17:24,359 --> 00:17:29,520
But if you've ever been let go 
or laid off or had a deal fall 

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00:17:29,520 --> 00:17:34,560
through after an entire year's 
worth of work, you know that we 

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00:17:34,560 --> 00:17:40,240
are not as much a control as we 
would like to be for others. 

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00:17:40,240 --> 00:17:41,360
Us. 
That Kingdom is our own 

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00:17:41,360 --> 00:17:46,600
families, these families that 
God has called us to lead and to

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00:17:46,600 --> 00:17:51,560
shepherd again, we hold on to so
tightly trying to control. 

246
00:17:53,360 --> 00:17:58,360
And so we've bought into the 
fear as parents that we have to 

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00:17:58,360 --> 00:18:02,840
get our kid on the right team, 
be part of the right ballet 

248
00:18:02,840 --> 00:18:06,360
company, and get into the right 
school. 

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00:18:07,600 --> 00:18:11,200
And if we can hit all of those 
boxes, then they'll just going 

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00:18:11,200 --> 00:18:17,480
to turn out just right. 
But you know that those of you 

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00:18:17,480 --> 00:18:23,440
whose kids have now all grown 
up, we're not much in control of

252
00:18:23,440 --> 00:18:27,480
that either. 
We've been called as parents not

253
00:18:27,480 --> 00:18:31,640
to raise our children according 
to kingdoms of this earth, but 

254
00:18:31,640 --> 00:18:35,920
according to the Kingdom of God,
and we serve a heavenly Father 

255
00:18:35,920 --> 00:18:39,040
that holds all of his children 
in the palm of his hand. 

256
00:18:41,640 --> 00:18:46,040
For others of us, our Kingdom is
our own health. 

257
00:18:47,960 --> 00:18:54,120
There's nothing quite like our 
own frailty as human beings that

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00:18:54,120 --> 00:18:59,160
confronts the lack of control 
that we have over our lives. 

259
00:19:01,840 --> 00:19:06,080
The kingship of Jesus is a 
threat to us. 

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00:19:07,640 --> 00:19:11,160
Let me tell you why. 
It's also incredibly liberating.

261
00:19:12,480 --> 00:19:18,480
Because our King is good. 
And when you behold the 

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00:19:18,480 --> 00:19:26,160
sovereign majesty of Jesus and 
you realize He is good, suddenly

263
00:19:26,160 --> 00:19:33,520
your grip on your life receives 
an invitation to let go, and you

264
00:19:33,520 --> 00:19:42,160
fall on His feet and bow down 
before him and worship our King,

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00:19:43,600 --> 00:19:49,560
out of his goodness and love, 
laid down his life for His 

266
00:19:49,560 --> 00:19:53,000
people. 
How do we know that our King is 

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00:19:53,000 --> 00:19:57,680
good and are questioning Him? 
When life lets us down? 

268
00:19:57,680 --> 00:20:02,520
How do we know that He is good? 
We look no further than the 

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00:20:02,520 --> 00:20:08,760
cross, and at the cross we see 
His goodness and sovereignty 

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00:20:09,040 --> 00:20:12,600
come to bear. 
That's what Jesus was talking 

271
00:20:12,600 --> 00:20:15,680
about in verse 23 when he says 
the hour has come for the Son of

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00:20:15,680 --> 00:20:19,560
Man to be glorified. 
Every time Jesus talks about the

273
00:20:19,640 --> 00:20:22,040
hour, he's talking about the 
hour of his death. 

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00:20:22,560 --> 00:20:26,240
The hour is crucifixion, he goes
on in verse 24. 

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00:20:26,240 --> 00:20:28,720
It says truly, truly. 
I say to you, unless a grain of 

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00:20:28,720 --> 00:20:31,720
wheat falls into the earth and 
dies, it remains alone. 

277
00:20:32,280 --> 00:20:34,360
But if it dies, it bears much 
fruit. 

278
00:20:34,360 --> 00:20:37,000
He tells a short parable to 
illustrate the point. 

279
00:20:37,920 --> 00:20:43,000
Just like a grain of wheat falls
and it's buried in the earth, 

280
00:20:43,960 --> 00:20:46,640
from it much fruit comes in a 
harvest. 

281
00:20:47,240 --> 00:20:52,880
So to Jesus must be separated 
from his Father, must be buried 

282
00:20:52,880 --> 00:20:56,000
in the ground so the third day 
he could rise again. 

283
00:20:56,600 --> 00:20:59,960
He goes on in verse 25, he says 
whoever loses loves his life 

284
00:20:59,960 --> 00:21:02,360
will lose it. 
Whoever hates his life and this 

285
00:21:02,360 --> 00:21:04,320
world will keep it for eternal 
life. 

286
00:21:05,560 --> 00:21:10,440
So not only does Jesus tell us 
about his sacrifice for us as a 

287
00:21:10,440 --> 00:21:14,200
king laying his life down for 
his people, but he's calling us 

288
00:21:14,440 --> 00:21:19,760
to follow him to the cross. 
And that is why the cross is so 

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00:21:19,760 --> 00:21:24,200
threatening to us, because it 
calls us to come and to die. 

290
00:21:26,720 --> 00:21:34,080
But in Christ's death, our sin 
is paid for, and in his 

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00:21:34,080 --> 00:21:39,040
resurrection his victory becomes
ours. 

292
00:21:40,320 --> 00:21:44,680
So the 3rd and final thing that 
we see here in John's account of

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00:21:44,680 --> 00:21:48,360
the triumphal entry, not only do
we see the misunderstanding of 

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00:21:48,360 --> 00:21:52,560
the disciples, the way that 
Jesus was a threat to the 

295
00:21:52,560 --> 00:21:58,440
Pharisees, we also see in the 
crowd all of the false 

296
00:21:58,440 --> 00:22:00,120
assumptions that we make about 
him. 

297
00:22:01,800 --> 00:22:06,920
Verse 27, as Jesus reflects on 
what he has come to Jerusalem to

298
00:22:06,920 --> 00:22:14,080
do, to die on the cross in our 
place for our sin, he prays a 

299
00:22:14,080 --> 00:22:17,320
prayer that sounds a lot like 
the prayer that he will 

300
00:22:17,320 --> 00:22:21,800
eventually pray in Gethsemane. 
Because now my soul is troubled,

301
00:22:22,720 --> 00:22:25,560
and what shall I say, Father, 
save me from this hour. 

302
00:22:26,240 --> 00:22:29,160
But for this purpose, I have 
come to this hour. 

303
00:22:29,160 --> 00:22:33,160
Father, glorify your name. 
In other words, Jesus, 

304
00:22:33,960 --> 00:22:37,520
considering the weight of sin 
that's about to be placed on him

305
00:22:37,520 --> 00:22:41,480
on the cross, considering the 
agony of his suffering and 

306
00:22:41,480 --> 00:22:44,160
death, he said, well, what 
should I do? 

307
00:22:44,160 --> 00:22:47,280
Should I pray to Godfather 
deliver me from the cross? 

308
00:22:47,440 --> 00:22:52,120
No, no, for this purpose I have 
come to this hour. 

309
00:22:52,120 --> 00:22:56,320
Father, glorify your name. 
And as soon as he utters those 

310
00:22:56,320 --> 00:23:00,760
words, a voice comes down from 
heaven and declares, I have 

311
00:23:00,760 --> 00:23:03,280
glorified it and I will glorify 
it again. 

312
00:23:05,120 --> 00:23:07,120
Can you imagine what it must 
have been like to have been 

313
00:23:07,120 --> 00:23:11,280
there that day? 
To have worked your way through 

314
00:23:11,280 --> 00:23:16,960
the crowds just to get a glimpse
of Jesus, to see him riding on a

315
00:23:16,960 --> 00:23:22,720
donkey into Jerusalem, to hear 
the words of Jesus talk about 

316
00:23:22,720 --> 00:23:26,560
what he has come to do, and to 
hear a voice from heaven cry 

317
00:23:26,560 --> 00:23:29,000
out? 
I have glorified my name, and I 

318
00:23:29,000 --> 00:23:35,160
will glorify it again. 
Just a week or so with the day 

319
00:23:35,160 --> 00:23:39,600
after Next Sunday, I'm going to 
go on sabbatical for the summer.

320
00:23:40,240 --> 00:23:42,480
One of the things that we're 
going to get to do, we're so 

321
00:23:42,480 --> 00:23:46,160
grateful for, is to spend some 
time in England and Scotland 

322
00:23:46,160 --> 00:23:49,280
visiting pastors and churches 
there and learning from them. 

323
00:23:50,240 --> 00:23:53,760
My wife and I just realized that
we're going to be in London 

324
00:23:53,880 --> 00:23:55,920
during the Trooping of the 
Color. 

325
00:23:55,920 --> 00:23:59,960
I don't know if you know what 
that is, but it's a parade, a 

326
00:23:59,960 --> 00:24:04,280
military parade that celebrates 
the birthday of the sovereign. 

327
00:24:05,720 --> 00:24:11,440
So on June 14th, all of London 
is going to be overcome with 

328
00:24:11,440 --> 00:24:15,600
people. 
We're going to be there and 

329
00:24:15,600 --> 00:24:19,760
crowds are going to form along 
the Mall just to get a glimpse 

330
00:24:19,920 --> 00:24:23,520
of the King as he makes his way 
down the road. 

331
00:24:24,440 --> 00:24:27,160
Of course yesterday we asked 
ourselves, should we go? 

332
00:24:27,160 --> 00:24:32,160
What do you think it was like 
for them that day? 

333
00:24:33,760 --> 00:24:36,120
Pushing their way to their 
crowds just to get a glimpse of 

334
00:24:36,240 --> 00:24:39,680
Jesus. 
What gave them the motivation to

335
00:24:39,680 --> 00:24:44,960
go and see him? 
Well, John tells us that it was 

336
00:24:44,960 --> 00:24:48,160
because they had heard that 
Jesus rose Lazarus from the 

337
00:24:48,160 --> 00:24:51,960
dead. 
They heard what Jesus had done. 

338
00:24:52,720 --> 00:24:54,360
They could raise the dead for 
life. 

339
00:24:54,360 --> 00:24:57,080
They wanted to go and see him. 
But I want you to ask yourself, 

340
00:24:57,080 --> 00:25:00,040
do you think they all came with 
good intentions? 

341
00:25:01,520 --> 00:25:05,080
You see, I think just like us, 
they had assumptions about Jesus

342
00:25:05,080 --> 00:25:06,920
even after they heard what he 
did. 

343
00:25:08,120 --> 00:25:10,520
There are some of them, I think,
that we're probably skeptics. 

344
00:25:11,200 --> 00:25:15,080
They heard that this man 
supposedly rose Lazarus from the

345
00:25:15,080 --> 00:25:16,720
dead, and they want to go see 
from themselves. 

346
00:25:16,720 --> 00:25:20,760
Can it be true? 
Out of their skepticism, they 

347
00:25:20,760 --> 00:25:23,240
went to see Jesus at the 
triumphal entry. 

348
00:25:25,960 --> 00:25:29,440
And I think we see a picture of 
them here as the voice cries out

349
00:25:29,440 --> 00:25:33,720
from heaven. 
They assume that it's Thunder. 

350
00:25:34,440 --> 00:25:36,080
It's the only logical 
explanation. 

351
00:25:37,560 --> 00:25:42,040
Others, I think, had heard about
Jesus, that he rose and from the

352
00:25:42,040 --> 00:25:45,240
dead, and they were overcome 
with the mystery of it all. 

353
00:25:46,200 --> 00:25:48,760
They were not skeptics. 
They were prone to mysticism. 

354
00:25:48,760 --> 00:25:50,880
They want to come and see a 
show. 

355
00:25:52,040 --> 00:25:57,320
So as they hear this voice call 
out from heaven and this sound, 

356
00:25:59,120 --> 00:26:02,080
they assume that it must be an 
Angel speaking to him. 

357
00:26:03,840 --> 00:26:08,240
None of them could have imagined
that what they heard from heaven

358
00:26:08,880 --> 00:26:11,680
was far more glorious than an 
Angel and far more powerful than

359
00:26:11,680 --> 00:26:19,720
a thunderstorm is a voice of God
the Father speaking over God the

360
00:26:19,720 --> 00:26:24,320
Son about the glory of the 
cross. 

361
00:26:26,160 --> 00:26:31,120
And so Jesus answers them in 
verse 30. 

362
00:26:32,040 --> 00:26:35,320
This voice has come for your 
sake, not mine. 

363
00:26:36,400 --> 00:26:40,600
Now is the judgement of this 
world, now with the ruler of 

364
00:26:40,600 --> 00:26:45,600
this world be cast out, and I, 
when I'm lifted up from the 

365
00:26:45,600 --> 00:26:49,880
earth, will draw all people to 
myself. 

366
00:26:52,440 --> 00:26:58,000
Jesus Christ, our great King, 
poured all of His sovereignty, 

367
00:26:58,600 --> 00:27:03,360
authority, and majesty out on 
the cross. 

368
00:27:04,640 --> 00:27:11,560
And there our great King died. 
He laid down his life for his 

369
00:27:11,560 --> 00:27:17,600
people. 
He died for our sins, so that on

370
00:27:17,600 --> 00:27:22,560
the third day he could rise 
again in victory over sin and 

371
00:27:22,560 --> 00:27:28,240
death. 
And in that way, even as they 

372
00:27:28,520 --> 00:27:33,680
waved palm branches at him, not 
fully understanding what he came

373
00:27:33,680 --> 00:27:40,200
to do, they were exactly right. 
Because the victory is ours in 

374
00:27:40,200 --> 00:27:46,400
Christ. 
And just a few years later, the 

375
00:27:46,400 --> 00:27:50,960
apostle John would write about 
another triumphal entry, one 

376
00:27:50,960 --> 00:27:53,760
that also had palm branches in 
the crowds. 

377
00:27:55,440 --> 00:27:58,480
And he was given a vision and 
recorded it in the Book of 

378
00:27:58,480 --> 00:28:03,640
Revelation, Revelation 7, verse 
9, John writes. 

379
00:28:03,640 --> 00:28:07,240
After this I looked and behold, 
a great multitude that no one 

380
00:28:07,240 --> 00:28:12,240
could number from every nation, 
from all tribes and peoples and 

381
00:28:12,240 --> 00:28:15,200
languages, standing before the 
throne and before the Lamb, 

382
00:28:15,200 --> 00:28:19,800
clothed in white robes with palm
branches in their hands, crying 

383
00:28:19,800 --> 00:28:24,320
out with a loud voice, Salvation
belongs to our God who sits on 

384
00:28:24,320 --> 00:28:28,320
the throne into the Lamb. 
Can you hear it? 

385
00:28:29,480 --> 00:28:34,200
The triumphal entry to come when
Christ our King comes again to 

386
00:28:34,200 --> 00:28:39,560
make all things new. 
On that day every tribe and 

387
00:28:39,560 --> 00:28:45,000
tongue and nation will wave palm
branches, declaring victory once

388
00:28:45,240 --> 00:28:48,360
and for all. 
And he can almost hear the voice

389
00:28:48,360 --> 00:28:54,040
of the Pharisees. 
Look, see, the world has gone 

390
00:28:54,040 --> 00:28:58,080
after Him ever since they 
uttered those words. 

391
00:28:59,280 --> 00:29:04,960
That promise has been fulfilled 
through God's people. 

392
00:29:04,960 --> 00:29:09,040
The fame of Jesus, his death and
resurrection has spread. 

393
00:29:10,080 --> 00:29:15,720
And this morning, as we come to 
this table, we're reminded not 

394
00:29:15,720 --> 00:29:19,760
only of what has gone before us,
but the feast that is to come. 

395
00:29:21,240 --> 00:29:24,480
And so as you come forward, look
around you. 

396
00:29:26,120 --> 00:29:29,640
Don't you see that the world has
gone after Him? 

397
00:29:31,520 --> 00:29:34,640
He has drawn all people to 
Himself. 

398
00:29:36,520 --> 00:29:42,560
Can you see that He is drawing 
you out of your skepticism, out 

399
00:29:42,560 --> 00:29:46,720
of your misunderstanding, out of
your false assumptions? 

400
00:29:47,760 --> 00:29:52,040
He has drawn you to behold your 
Savior at the cross. 

401
00:29:52,040 --> 00:29:54,800
Let's pray. 
Father in Heaven, we pray now as

402
00:29:54,800 --> 00:29:57,560
we come to this table, that You 
would prepare our hearts. 

403
00:29:57,560 --> 00:30:03,240
May you rule and reign over us. 
May we bow our knees before our 

404
00:30:03,240 --> 00:30:07,720
Savior Jesus, and in his 
kingship may we find the victory

405
00:30:07,720 --> 00:30:10,880
that is ours through his death 
and resurrection. 

406
00:30:11,680 --> 00:30:16,120
And so we pray now that you 
would prepare us as we come to 

407
00:30:16,120 --> 00:30:21,960
this table, as your people help 
us to not only behold you, but 

408
00:30:21,960 --> 00:30:25,720
in one another, to behold the 
salvation that you are working 

409
00:30:25,760 --> 00:30:28,480
in and through us. 
We ask in Jesus name, Amen. 

410
00:30:28,480 --> 00:30:29,400
Would you please stand?
