Message by Larry Thacker Jr. from July 16, “Blessed Is He Who Comes in the Name of The Lord”

Our study continues with John 12:12-19. We are now into the final week before Jesus will be crucified. All of the writers cover this period as it is central to the Christian message, but John again provides us with detail that the others did not record. This is the day following the dinner at which Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus, anointed Jesus with the expensive perfume. When others criticized her , Jesus defended her action and made a statement that surely must have seemed strange at the time, “Let her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of My burial." They did not yet understand how soon that would come, or what would happen next. We're told that a crowd began to gather, wanting to see Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead the last time He was in town. Jesus now sets out for Jerusalem, and he gets quite a reception. People would have been there from all over the land of Israel for the Passover. Many of them would have come from areas where Jesus performed His miracles, and they were praising Him for what He had done. John specifically mentions the raising of Lazarus as inspiring the crowd. Many churches celebrate this event as Palm Sunday. The people were waving palm branches and spreading their coats in the road as he came into town. This was a way of welcoming royalty. They shouted, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel.” These words were taken from Psalm 118;25-26 and were sung by the temple choir at Passover. They spoke of the coming messiah. How soon they would seem to forget. But Jesus knew what He was doing, and what would come of it. The crowd has always been fickle. The question for us is this. Will we follow the crowd, or will we follow Jesus? He went to the cross so that we can still say, Blessed is He who comes in the name of The Lord!"