Are Your Expectations of Jesus Wrong? | The Gospels | John 12:12–19
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What question is introduced about changing crowds and expectations of Jesus?
Welcome to 10-Minute Bible Talks, where we connect the Bible to your life and the time it takes to get to work.
I'm Jensen Holt-McNair. We all have expectations. Expectations for how the day will go. Expectations for your future. It's perfectly normal and natural to expect things. But psychologists and researchers like Dr. John Gottman say that unrealistic expectations, specifically in your marriage, often lead to its demise. Because when you expect something from someone and they don't deliver on it, you grow discontent, you resent them, you feel betrayed, all because of unspoken expectations that you had for your spouse. Now, this isn't just a marital problem. When our expectations aren't met in any relationship, we fall into the same feelings of discontent, resentment, and betrayal. I've long wondered how the same people who welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday shouting, Hosanna, save us, were shouting crucify him by Friday.
What happened? What did Jesus do that so greatly offended them?
How does everyday expectation-setting relate to spiritual disappointment?
How did their belief wither so quickly? Why the shifting emotions towards this man? Now the answer lies in expectation. Let's take a look at John's account of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. 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 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!' So from the outside, it looks like these people, the crowds who we learn later had heard of the miraculous signs, the raising of Lazarus from the dead.
What happened at Jesus' triumphal entry according to John 12:12–19?
It seems like they're beginning to understand who Jesus really is. They shout, Hosanna, save us. They see that Jesus comes from the Lord. They even call him king. From our vantage point, it looks like they get it. Jesus came to save them. He was sent by God. He came to be king of all creation. But there's a hint in here that tips us off to what this crowd is actually saying here. They were waving palm branches. Now, when we hear this, we think nothing of it because every year in church, we pass out palm branches and wave them to remember that Jesus came to save us, that he was sent by God and he's king. But the palm branches had a specific symbolism to these Jews in the crowd praising Jesus. They were actually a nationalistic symbol.
The waving of palm branches isn't just a fun prop for Sunday school. It's a loaded symbolic gesture. These people believe that Jesus has come to be a national deliverer, to deliver these Jews from the Romans who oppressed them, to be king of Israel, to sit on an earthly throne, to lead a physical rebellion.
Why did the crowd wave palm branches and expect a political Messiah?
Their expectation of the Messiah is immediate physical relief from oppression. Jesus had come to save them from the Romans. God had sent him to be their deliverer like Moses was. Jesus would be king of Israel, not Caesar, not the emperor.
How does Zechariah 9:9 shape the meaning of Jesus riding a donkey?
God was going to deliver his people. See, they were saying the technical right things, but their expectations for who Jesus would be and what he would do would turn out to be wrong. John continues by saying, Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it. as it is written, Do not be afraid, daughter 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. So even the disciples didn't fully understand. Even they had wrong expectations for Jesus. It's why they scatter and deny when the hand of Rome seems to be defeating Jesus.
Now that passage that John references here is from Zechariah 9.9. The original passage says, Rejoice greatly, daughter Zion. Shout, daughter Jerusalem. See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the river to the ends of the earth. See, this king would be victorious, but it would be through humility, lowly riding on a colt.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What question is introduced about changing crowds and expectations of Jesus?
0:00–1:17
2
How does everyday expectation-setting relate to spiritual disappointment?
1:17–1:57
3
What happened at Jesus' triumphal entry according to John 12:12–19?
1:57–3:07
4
Why did the crowd wave palm branches and expect a political Messiah?
3:07–3:26
5
How does Zechariah 9:9 shape the meaning of Jesus riding a donkey?
3:26–5:30
6
What does Colossians 2 explain about the kind of salvation Jesus brings?
5:30–7:25
7
How can misplaced expectations cause people to turn away from faith?
7:25–9:04
8
What practical steps are suggested for realigning our expectations of Jesus?
9:04–11:46
Speakers
1 identifiedMore from Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study
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