John 12: 12 - 19

 John 12: 12 - 19

The picture of unbelief continues on the part of the religious leaders. The refusal to believe, their hard-heartedness is so extreme that they plot to murder Lazarus. A hard heart will go to any lengths to deny or suppress the evidence. Rather than believe in Jesus they see others coming to faith based Lazarus and his resurrection. So the Jews will try to hide the evidence by killing an innocent man. This would not be the last plot to do so. Proof or lack of proof was clearly not their problem.

In this passage we see a swelling multitude. The first is the multitude that went to see Jesus and Lazarus. Add to this first crowd another multitude of the pilgrims who came to Jerusalem for Passover.  They also went to see Jesus. At the core of this multitude were eyewitnesses to the resurrection of Lazarus.  John's description is falling all over itself to express the size of the crowd. We often picture the triumphal entry as Jesus and a few dozen disciples making their way into town. In reality this was a massive demonstration in a crowded city. It was a political powder keg and Jesus was being proclaimed as king. The Roman charge that Jesus was “King of the Jews” was no stretch of fantasy. At the moment of the triumphal entry it appeared that a revolution is only a word away.

The final phrase of this passage is an admission of Jesus' popularity and could be an indictment of the American church. The Pharisees state in frustration that “the world has gone after Him”. How grand it would be that every enemy of the Lord ought to say that as they look at every Church.

“Lord, help me to be so engaged in the life of faith that those near me are going after Jesus as well. AMEN”