Louie Giglio - When It Mattered Most, Jesus Showed Up
Just to take us to that moment of Palm Sunday, it’s something like what we were just experiencing, singing praise to Yahweh. The atmosphere was full of praise. Jesus had just come from Bethany; he was taking his short journey to Jerusalem, and in the midst of it, the news of him was traveling fast. So, maybe a little background if you don’t know: Palm Sunday is Jesus entering the city of Jerusalem during Passover.
We’ve talked about Passover many times; it’s the celebration of the moment where God delivered his people out of Egypt. Because of the blood of an innocent lamb spread over the doorposts of the home, the angel of death passed over those who were trusting in God’s provision. For centuries, the people of God, the Jewish people, had celebrated this salvation moment of Passover. People were coming to Jerusalem from all over the known world; those in Jerusalem were buzzing with the energy of the Passover celebration. In this particular moment, Jesus appeared riding into the city. The backdrop of all this was Bethany, the town he was coming from just a few miles up the road—a place where Lazarus had been raised from the dead, where now Jesus was being celebrated by people as a great miracle worker, and where many crowds were gathering around.
We are not to the cross yet, nor to the resurrection yet, but resurrection is already in the air; Lazarus is alive, and a lot of people want to see Jesus. Many people are coming just to see Lazarus raised from the dead. Yet, in the midst of it all, Jesus knew that even though praise was in the air and resurrection was in the air, he knew that Passover was on the cards, and he knew what he had come to do. The backdrop, as we shared in our responsive reading today, is found in John 12. In this particular text, we see what is happening in the wings. There was a dinner right before the text we are going to read, and at this dinner, a woman came and poured expensive perfume on Jesus, honoring and celebrating him. Then we come down to verse 9 of John 12, which says, «Meanwhile, a large crowd of Jews found out that Jesus was there and came not only because of him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead.»
So, the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well. A little bit earlier, it says they were aiming to eliminate Jesus, but now they want to take Lazarus out as well. Because of Lazarus, many of the Jews were going over to Jesus and believing in him. The next day, the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. They took palm branches—there’s Palm Sunday—and went out to meet him, shouting «Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the King of Israel!»
Like what we’ve already experienced in our gathering today, big praise was happening around Jesus. «Hosanna! Save us!» is what the word means. «Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! The King is coming! Blessed is the King of Israel!» They were thinking the Passover miracle worker, Lazarus is alive; this could be a climactic moment where Jesus really does take over as king. But they have no idea what is in the plan and heart of God. They have no idea that this king has come to lay his life down. Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written, «Do not be afraid, daughter of Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.»
At first, his disciples did not understand all this; only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that these things had been done to him. Now, the crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to spread the word. Many people, because they had heard that he had performed this sign, went out to meet him. So, the Pharisees said to one another, «See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!» A massive crowd, big momentum, lots of energy—all focused on this powerful, miracle-working Jesus.
But Jesus was thinking something far greater than they could understand; he was fulfilling prophecies. Riding on the colt of a donkey is one prophecy he was fulfilling, but there’s another prophecy I want you to see that gives us insight into what Jesus is thinking in this moment. Isaiah 50, talking about the sin of the people and the saving power of God, describes Jesus: «The Sovereign Lord has given me a well-instructed tongue"—this speaks of Jesus, hundreds of years before the moment we’re now in on Palm Sunday—"to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed. The Sovereign Lord has opened my ears; I have not been rebellious; I have not turned away.» Instead, now verse six: «I offered my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting. Because the Sovereign Lord helps me, I will not be disgraced; therefore, I have set my face like flint, and I know I will not be put to shame.»
What Isaiah was prophesying is that the Savior would come and he would come with determination: «I set my face like flint towards Jerusalem; I set my face like flint toward the cross; I set my face like flint towards the mission of God.» Flint, in this context, is obviously hard stone, and what it’s saying about Jesus is that there was a resolve in him, a determination in him. Throughout the opposition and challenges along the way, he would say, «No, I am determined that I am going to do what I have come to do. I’m determined I’m going to show up on Palm Sunday at the right place, at the right time, at just the right moment to do what only I can do.» I think Luke had this text in Isaiah, maybe in mind when he described Jesus coming to Jerusalem as well. He says in Luke 9, «As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven"—this means as it’s time for him to fulfill the purpose of dying on the cross, being buried in a borrowed tomb, being raised from the dead, and then ascending back into heaven—"as that is all approaching,» Luke says, «Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.» Like flint, he was determined and focused to do what only he could do.
And what did he do for us? He showed up for you, and he showed up for me. I don’t know all the stories of all the people in this gathering, but I’m guessing that most of us have a moment in our story where someone didn’t show up for us. Maybe a spouse didn’t show, a parent didn’t show, or that close friend who said, «Oh, you can count on me; I’ll be there,» but they didn’t show. Or consistently, someone hasn’t shown up for you. But on Palm Sunday, the celebration was that Jesus was now entering Jerusalem. In Jesus' heart, it was a resolute determination like flint; he was coming to do what only he can do: to give his life for the glory of God, to give his life for the good of all of us. He showed up.
I’ve told this story many times, but when I was in high school, I played tennis and finally made it to the regional championship game, where the winner would go to the state tennis tournament here in Georgia. We were in a doubles match, my partner and I, and about halfway through the first set, I looked over at the massive tennis center we were playing at, and near the clubhouse, I saw my dad leaning against the wall. That was a big deal because my dad had never come to any of my tennis matches throughout high school before. That’s no knock on my dad; he worked a flexible job on the west side downtown. We played these tennis matches way up in Cobb County, Marietta, and in places like McEachern High School and South Cobb. Most of them were played on pretty rough tennis courts behind the high school, so it was hard for him to break away at 2:30 or 4:00 in the afternoon when the matches happened.
But for this particular match, I looked over at the biggest match I’d ever played in—one that we did win, and we did go to the state tournament—and I saw my dad right there. I don’t know what went through his mind that day, saying, «You know what? I’ve never seen my kid play tennis before, and I’ve never made it out to one of these matches, but I’m going to show up today.» We know what it feels like when someone shows up, and we know what it feels like when they don’t. What we’re celebrating today is that God valued us so much that when it mattered most, Jesus showed up.
I hope and pray today that as we contemplate this cross before us and ultimately celebrate all that it means for us, we somehow grasp that reality today no matter who has or hasn’t been there—God showed up for me. Oh, they waved the palm branches and shouted, «Hosanna!» They thought this was a takeover like no other. But Jesus was coming to say God loves you, he values you, he is for you and not against you, and your life matters to God. He came for the glory of God, yes, but he also came to show you how much you matter to God.
I love this sermon from 1880 where Charles Spurgeon preached about this idea that Jesus set his face like flint toward Jerusalem, that he was determined to make it happen. He would overcome every obstacle, even from his own friends and followers telling him, «There’s no way you’re going to give your life on a cross; there’s no way that should happen to you; there’s no way that’s how the story is going to play out—to every temptation imaginable put before him, amidst all the hardship of being in human flesh. Even the praise and adulation of this day, where he’s going to pay the ultimate price and receive the ultimate celebration—he could have jumped on that wave, saying, „Wow, this is great being accepted and adored; isn’t this what we’re all searching for in life?“ But instead, he said, „No, I have determination; I have something I want to do for you that I must do for you, for God and for you I have come.“
This is what Spurgeon preached about that Isaiah text, saying, „My great object is to lead you to love him who so loved you that he set his face like flint in his determination to save you.“ Oh, you redeemed ones, on whose behalf this strong resolve was made; you who have been bought by the precious blood of this steadfast, resolute redeemer, come and think a while of him so that your hearts may burn within you and your faces may be set like flint to live and die for him who lives, lived, and died for you. I love that Spurgeon picks up this idea that we’ve carried at Passion City Church—a contemplation and celebration of the cross—not just to move quickly by it or say, „Wow, that’s such an amazing thing that God has done,“ but to sit with it and let it sit with us. The way he says it is: „Come and think a while of him.“
Come and think a while of him who was so resolute, so that you too will have a heart that is lit with new fire for him and a face that is set and determined to live for him and to die for him; to live with him and to die with him, our hearts resolute to bring glory to God. If nothing else today, I pray the Holy Spirit awakens us to the determination of Jesus to be faithful until the very end. I pray that the Holy Spirit will awaken in us today the cost of following him to the end.