Hello! Pastor Alan taught us about the Prophecy, the Praise, and the Promise of Palm Sunday by leading us through John 12:1-19. To listen to this message, simply click play on the audio player below. I’ve also included some notes and links to the Scriptures referenced. Below that, I’ve included Pastor’s notes from the previous week (which accidentally did not get recorded…oops!) when Pastor taught on The Miracle of Sight in John 9. Enjoy!
*A special note: despite the snow that is currently falling, we plan to have Easter Sunrise Service at the Boyles’ home at 7 am, followed by a potluck breakfast. Regular Sunday Service will, as always, be at 10:30 am at the church. The weather forecasters promise that it will warm up! 🙂
Palm Sunday: The Prophecy, the Praise, and the Promise
Prophecy
- Zechariah 9:9
- The donkey is a symbol of service – a pack animal that takes the burden of man.
Praise
- Hosanna (John 12:13) – means “save us.” The people wanted a new David.
- Mary anointed Him, not to be the king, but to die.
“Jesus and Alexander the Great” by Charles Ross Weede
Jesus and Alexander died at thirty-three;
One died in Babylon; and one on Calvary.
One gained all for self; and one Himself He gave;
One conquered every throne; the other every grave.
The one made himself god; The God made Himself less;
The one lived but to blast; the other but to bless!
When died the Greek, forever fell his throne of swords
But Jesus died to live forever Lord of lords.
Jesus and Alexander died at thirty-three.
The Greek made all men slaves; the Jew made all men free.
One built a throne on blood; the other built on love,
The one was born of earth; the other from above;
One won all this earth, to lose all earth and heaven.
The other gave up all, that all to Him be given.
The Greek forever died; the Jew forever lives;
He loses all who gets, and gets all things who gives.
Promise
Miracle of Sight: John 9
The Miracle (John 9:1-5)
- Legalism: do good and God will bless; do bad and God will curse.
- No one is good enough in relation to God’s holiness.
- Who gets to define what good is?
- Jesus says this isn’t about sin. This is an opportunity to show God’s glory. (John 9:1-3)
- Two lessons from the miracle:
- Jesus was sent and Jesus sends.
- Jesus is the Light and we are to walk in Him as light. (John 9:4-5)
The Reaction (John 9:6-34)
- Disbelief: a common reaction to the miracles of Jesus. Even today, some Christian teachers explain away the miracles. (John 9:6-12)
- Interrogation: yet another encounter Jesus had with the Pharisees over healing on the Sabbath. (John 9:13-34)
- Sabbath – a day of rest for the good of mankind. Jesus kept the heart of the Sabbath through compassionate healing (the good of that particular man).
- The Pharisees weren’t interested in compassion or people, only in proving how obedient to God they could be by keeping and enforcing rules.
- Three steps of interrogation:
- John 9:13-17 – The first thing about legalists is that they are close-minded. They are invested in getting rid of the threat to their system.
- John 9:18-23 – The second thing about legalists is that they use fear to control people’s actions. When the Pharisees don’t get what they want from the man, they go after his parents. All works-based religions are fear-based. It is a powerful way to keep people in line.
- John 9:24-34 – The man is brought back in and proves he had guts. He knew the real Power from the phony, hate-filled hypocrisy.
- vs. 25: “I was blind, but now I see.” Sound familiar? 🙂
The Application (John 9:35-41)
- Jesus is the “Son of Man” – the bridge between man & God
- Jesus gives spiritual sight to those who know and admit that they are spiritually blind. If you think that everything is okay because you are being “good,” you remain blind.
“It is not our littleness that hinders Christ; but our bigness.
It is not our weakness that hinders Christ; it’s our strength.
It is not our darkness that hinders Christ; it is our supposed light that holds back His hand.”
-Charles Spurgeon
Colona Community Church 