Sermon Notes - John 12:1-19 - Unknown - Littleby Baptist Church - July 16, 2023

1.     Lazarus being raised from the dead was the seventh and final sign John had recorded in his letter.

2.     A miracle that showed that Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life.

a.      A sign that points to the future when Jesus brings all the saints to Him.

b.     A physical resurrection that is symbolic of what happens to our souls as we turn to Jesus.

c.      Many believed!

d.     Some did not.

e.      This sign was the final straw.

f.      Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin have determined that Jesus must die.

3.     As we pick up in chapter 12, we enter the final days leading to our Saviors death.

4.     John 12:1-2

a.      Jesus returns to Bethany and a dinner is thrown in His honor.

b.     Mark tells us that this dinner is being held at Simon the Leper’s home.

c.      A time of celebration.

5.     John 12:3

a.      Mary anoints Jesus with a very expensive perfume.

b.     Then wiped his feet dry with her hair.

c.      She likely gave Jesus her most expensive possession by breaking open the jar of perfume.

d.     She humbled herself by using her hair to dry His feet.

e.      Mary was honoring Jesus as the Son of God.

f.      Submitting fully to Him.

g.     In Jesus’ day, servants cleaned feet.

h.     Highly unlikely that a servant would have owned a 300 denarii perfume.

i.       Mary took the place of a servant to honor Jesus.

j.       Mary showed that Jesus is worthy of all we have and there is nothing that we should not be willing to do in honor of Him.

k.     Jesus is worthy of all of our Honor and Praise!

l.       He is worthy of all we have in this life.

m.   He is worthy of our lives, in all that we do and even in that final breath we take.

n.     As we seek our God we are to withhold nothing from Him.

o.     No task too small or too great.

p.     All that we do we are to do in honor, in service, and in sacrifice to our Jesus.

6.     John 12:4-5

a.      300 denarii, a years’ worth of pay.

b.     The gift given was extravagant.

c.      Judas, the one who betrays Jesus, saw the gift as a waste.

d.     Mark 14:4-5

e.      Judas attitude spread to some of the others.

f.      One bad apple can spoil the bunch.

g.     One person embracing sin, can and will influence those around them.

h.     We may think that we are secure or above being influenced, but we are human.

i.       We are impacted by the actions and words of others.

j.       Judas started complaining about the waste and some of the other disciples joined in.

k.     They are human just like us.

l.       Our faith may be solid, our salvation is secure, but we can be led astray.

m.   We need to remain grounded in the Word of God.

n.     James 4:7-8

o.     Draw near to God.

p.     Submit to Him.

q.     Cleanse ourselves.

r.      In hopes that we can resist the temptations that are before us.

s.      We cannot resist on our own.

t.       We will fail if we do not make time with God a priority.

u.     We need our God if we are to stand strong in this world.

7.     John 12:6

a.      With the hindsight of history, John was able to see that Judas’ reaction was because he was stealing form Jesus.

b.     Mary gave sacrificially.

c.      Judas was betraying Jesus by stealing from Him.

d.     1 Timothy 6:10

e.      For Judas to betray Jesus by stealing from the money bag, he must have loved money more than he loved Jesus.

f.      Hard to imagine being that close to Jesus, hearing the teachings firsthand, and still choosing sin over life.

g.     It is easy to vilify Judas and those like him.

h.     I do hope we can remember to love them as our neighbors, as we would love ourselves.

i.       I pray that we can remember that they are lost souls in need of a Savior no different than each of us.

8.     John 12:7-8

a.      You will always have the poor with you… poverty has not ended in 2,000 years and likely will not end until our Lord’s 1,000-year reign.

b.     Deuteronomy 15:11

c.      Open your hand to those in need.

d.     Those complaining about money going to anoint Jesus will have other opportunities to care for the poor.

e.      But the days of honoring Jesus before His death were few.

f.      Mary honored Jesus as she should.

g.     We are to honor Jesus with our lives, our choices, and with our money.

h.     As individuals we do that by supporting Littleby, giving to those in need, and any other ministries we support.

i.       As a church we are to do the same.

j.       If you become aware of a ministry with a need, please bring it before the church.

k.     We have been blessed and it would be good to share those blessings with others.

9.     John 12:9-11

a.      As many came to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover, they would look for Jesus.

b.     They hoped to see Him.

c.      They likely hoped to see or maybe even receive a miracle from Him.

d.     The religious leaders were out to get Jesus.

e.      They convinced themselves that they needed to kill him in order to protect themselves from Rome.

f.      Sadly, Lazarus being the recipient of a major sign was also being targeted by them.

g.     Imagine people being out to get you because you were the reason people started believing in Jesus?

h.     We know that Christ followers run the risk of facing persecution.

i.       If that must be the case, let’s hope it is because people are believing in Jesus because of something we have said or done!

j.       May our lives point people to Jesus at all cost.

10.  John 12:12-13

a.      Palm Sunday.

b.     Many have come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover.

c.      Many of them are from the Galilean area and had witnessed the amazing signs of Jesus.

d.     They were shouting Hosanna in hope that Jesus had come to save them.

e.      Psalm 118:25-26

f.      Save us… one who was sent by God.

g.     Some there may have understood and saw Jesus as the Messiah He is.

h.     Some were still looking for Him to be the triumphant King.

i.       The earthly king of Israel.

j.       Either way they were honoring Him.

11.  John 12:14-15

a.      Zechariah 9:9 – quoting.

b.     John wants to make sure we and all who have read this letter, know that Jesus is fulfilling prophecy.

c.      He did not enter Jerusalem, or as referred to here as Daughter Zion, riding on a war horse.

d.     He did not enter standing as a triumphant king in a chariot.

e.      Jesus came humbly riding a donkey.

f.      Jesus came declaring peace.

g.     Not a triumphant king, but the true King who will bring peace to His people.

12.  John 12:16

a.      We have regularly seen that the crowds did not understand, but neither did Jesus’ disciples.

b.     They were willing to follow Jesus.

c.      They declared that He is the Messiah.

d.     But, without an understanding of the events to come.

e.      Without the cross and the Resurrection it did not make sense.

f.      Without the Holy Spirit being in them, they did not see how it all came together.

13.  John 12:17-18

a.      The crowd kept coming...

b.     Most had heard about this Jesus and wanted to see Him.

c.      Some were there to see what He would do next.

d.     Would it be as grand as raising Lazarus from the dead, would it be a greater sign.

e.      The crowd was there, but most did not believe.

f.      They were there for the miracles, not because they believed Jesus was the Messiah.

g.     True faith can only come from understanding that we are lost without Jesus and that His work on the cross can change our forever address.

14.  John 12:19

a.      On the surface it looked like the Pharisees plan to kill Jesus was going to fail.

b.     They were afraid of the people and could not arrest Him during the festival or people may riot.

c.      They thought it was over.

d.     The thing is, the triumphal entry was not what it looked to be.

e.      Many there did not believe in Jesus.

f.      They were caught up in the emotion.

g.     They did not have faith.

15.  In the first sections of this chapter, we see that things may not be what they seem.

a.      The Pharisees thought their plans were foiled, but the crowds did not believe in Jesus as they had thought.

b.     Judas looked like a faithful disciple who was passionate about the poor, but his love of money led him to betray Jesus.

c.      Things are not always what they seem.

d.     We need to protect ourselves from being led astray.

e.      We need to put on the belt of Truth, the Word of God.

f.      We need the Holy Spirit to guide us.

g.     We live in a fallen world.

h.     Only through prioritizing our God can we see through the lies.

i.       Draw near to God, so that you will not be led astray.

j.       Uncertainty will hit, when it does… Look Up and turn to Jesus.

k.     Look up to our Lord, who is the author and perfector of our faith.

l.       Let Him guide you.

m.   If He is your Lord, trust Him.

n.     If not, I would love to talk to you.