The Crowd Around Jesus _ Part 1

John 12:12-15 The next day a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, and cried out: “Hosanna! ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ The King of Israel!” Then Jesus, when He had found a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written: “Fear not, daughter of Zion; Behold, your King is coming, Sitting on a donkey’s colt.”

This last Sunday, Pastor Obie continued in our church’s sermon series through the book of John, with Christ “triumphal Entry” into Jerusalem. Messianic prophecy was being fulfilled before their very eyes. Zechariah 9:9 prophesied, “Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey.” Psalm 118:25 proclaims, “Save now, I pray, O Lord” and Almighty God sent Christ to “save now”; the very meaning of the Hebrew word “Hosanna”. But, in the crowd around Jesus that day, there were four types of people gathered, which still exist in the world today. The question is: which type is the type of person that Jesus wants us to be?

John 1:12-13 “As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

The first type of people in the crowd was a “disciple”. A “Disciple” is defined in the 1828 Noah Webster’s dictionary as 1.  A learner; a scholar; one who receives or professes to receive instruction from another; as the disciples of Jesus. 2. A follower; an adherent to the doctrines of another. Hence the constant attendants of Christ were called his disciples; and hence all Christians are called his disciples, as they profess to learn and receive his doctrines and precepts. A pupil / follower of Jesus Christ. Per the Strong’s Dictionary of Bible Words, the Greek word “Mathētēs”, meaning disciple, translates to “student”. A true disciple follows Jesus (their God-given Savior and Lord) because they genuinely love Him inwardly and love others outwardly sharing the love of God and the gospel of salvation. They have believed and put their full faith in Jesus Christ, being saved by grace through faith as a gift from God. Their sins are forgiven, they are reconciled with God, their spirit is regenerated, they have been “born again” with a new heart and the Holy Spirit indwelling as a constant guide. They love to hear the voice of God through prayer, the Word of God in the Holy Scriptures and in the preaching of the gospel. They are consistent in dedication, devotion and the desire to connect to the Lord and the community. They have found the narrow gate, taken the straight and narrow path because they are a child of God and their citizenship is in heaven.

Let's continue Pastor Obie's message in the next post.
In Christ, Brian