A Worthy King
John 11:55-12:19 (May 21)
It is almost time for the Jewish Passover celebration. People are coming from all around for the purification ceremony. Everyone but Jesus. The leading priests and Pharisees are on the lookout for him and have ordered anyone who sees him to report it so he can be arrested.
Jesus returns to Bethany about six days before Passover begins. He is back in the place where he just performed the most amazing miracle of bringing his dead friend Lazarus back to life. (Everyone is still all abuzz about that one!)
Martha, being Martha, has made a nice dinner in honor of Jesus. I imagine they are all still in celebration of her brother's life. I'm sure Martha fussed over this meal, wanting it to be perfect.
During dinner, Mary poured an expensive bottle of perfume over the feet of Jesus and wiped it with her hair. What a beautiful demonstration of worship. What an amazing symbol of how much Mary valued him, and the honor she felt he deserved.
But Judas Iscariot didn't think so. In his mind, that perfume should have been sold and "given to the poor." More likely, he would've sold that perfume to line his own pockets, as he frequently did. Judas was not nice...not nice at all. (We will soon see just how "not nice" he really was.)
Of course, word got out that Jesus was there. (This man could go incognito nowhere!) Everyone wanted to see him. They also wanted a glimpse of Lazarus who had been raised from the dead. After all, how can we possibly believe unless we see with our very own eyes??
I imagine it to be like a circus side show. Everyone wants a glimpse of the abnormal...the bearded lady, the giant, the mermaid, and the part man/part amphibian. (Sounds like a scene from The Greatest Showman)
The next day, Jesus went on his way to Jerusalem. I imagine by this time, he is tired of all the notoriety, tired of being preyed upon by the Pharisees, and tired of the naysayers. But the prophecy had to be fulfilled, so off he went to do what God had asked of him.
A large crowd of people who had gathered for the Passover went down the road to meet him. They took palm branches and laid them on the ground, shouting, "Praise God! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hail to the King of Israel!"
Now, the disciples were a little confused. It would be later, after Jesus left them, that they would remember back to this moment and realize that it was a fulfillment of prophecy. That is when they would have their "AHA" moment.
How many times has that happened to you? You are in a situation that maybe you don't quite understand. It isn't until later that the realization comes to you, and you think, "Now I get it!"
While all this was happening, those who had seen Lazarus rise from the dead were telling others. Understandably, this was a very hot topic of conversation, as I'm sure it would've been even today. Because of all this talk, more and more people were believing in him. The Pharisees were getting discouraged by the following that was gathering around him. His value is growing amongst the people. He is becoming more and more worthy to them as they hear about what he has done.
That final miracle, raising Lazarus from the dead, seemed to be the thing that brought so many more to follow Jesus. It took all that he had done before that day, along with the miracle of that incident, to get these people to believe what he was saying, and to stand in honor of him as the King of Kings.
There was a shift in thinking among many, that maybe... just maybe... this man was who he said he was.
What does it take for you to believe? Do you need miracles and signs? Or are you happy and content with following the Word of God and believing it for truth, without seeing these things for yourself?
That is where the word "FAITH" comes in. It is believing that which you cannot see. It is trusting all your unknowns to a known God.
Faith is giving all glory and honor to the One who deserves it. It is standing on the side of the road and waving your palm leaves for the King of Kings...a very worthy King indeed!