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Palm Sunday; Jesus Glorified (John 12)
2026 03/29 Palm Sunday; Jesus Glorified (John 12);Audio available at: http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20260329_palm-sunday.mp3
Palm Sunday Prophecies
This is Palm Sunday. Old Testament prophecies spoke of the promise of the coming King. Psalm 118 says:
Psalm 118:19 Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the LORD. 20 This is the gate of the LORD; the righteous shall enter through it. 21 I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation. 22 The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. 23 This is the LORD’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. 24 This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. 25 Save us, we pray, O LORD! O LORD, we pray, give us success! 26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD! We bless you from the house of the LORD.
The stone that the builders rejected; the leadership of Israel had rejected Jesus. But he would become the cornerstone. He is foundational to everything. He sets the shape and trajectory of the entire building. This, this is the day! This is the day that we have been waiting for! This is the day that YHWH has made! The long anticipated day has arrived. This is a day of gladness and rejoicing! Hosanna; save us, we pray! Hosanna; save now! Blessed is he who comes in the name of YHWH! YHWH has become my salvation. Open the gates to the King of Righteousness!
Isaiah 62 speaks of Jerusalem established as a praise in the earth; the Lord will delight in her;
Isaiah 62:8 The LORD has sworn by his right hand and by his mighty arm: “I will not again give your grain to be food for your enemies, and foreigners shall not drink your wine for which you have labored; 9 but those who garner it shall eat it and praise the LORD, and those who gather it shall drink it in the courts of my sanctuary.” 10 Go through, go through the gates; prepare the way for the people; build up, build up the highway; clear it of stones; lift up a signal over the peoples. 11 Behold, the LORD has proclaimed to the end of the earth: Say to the daughter of Zion, “Behold, your salvation comes; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.” 12 And they shall be called The Holy People, The Redeemed of the LORD; and you shall be called Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken.
Daughter of Zion, behold your salvation comes!
In Zechariah 9 the Lord says:
Zechariah 9:8 Then I will encamp at my house as a guard, so that none shall march to and fro; no oppressor shall again march over them, for now I see with my own eyes. 9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
John 12; Prophecies Fulfilled
John gives this account of Palm Sunday
John 12:12 The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” 14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written, 15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!” 16 His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.
Matthew, Mark and Luke tell us that Jesus orchestrated this whole thing. He sent two of his disciples into the village to retrieve the donkey’s colt he was to ride on. Old Testament prophecies were being realized before their very eyes. Matthew specifically highlights the intentional fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies. Jesus is consciously presenting himself to Jerusalem as their coming King and their salvation, the King of righteousness, humble and mounted on a donkey.
The religious leaders respond in frustration:
John 12:19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.”
What a day! Fulfillment of prophecies! Jesus publicly presented to Jerusalem as King. Religious leaders losing influence; Jesus receiving the acclaim of the people; momentum is huge; Jerusalem is packed for Passover. ‘Look, the world has gone after him!’ Rejoice! Shout aloud! Behold your King is coming to you!
Anticlimactic Day
Palm Sunday has to be the most anti-climactic day in the history of the world. Mark records it this way in his gospel:
Mark 11:7 And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. 8 And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. 9 And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! 10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!” 11 And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.
Jesus entered the gates to the acclaim of all the people. He entered Jerusalem, went into the temple courts, looked around at everything, and left. He returned to Bethany to spend the night with his disciples. Wait, that’s it? He just looks around and then he walks away? The world has gone after him; finally they acknowledge who he is. This is the day! Ride the wave! Seize the moment!
Instead Jesus walks away. What did the crowds think? The next day he comes back and cleans house. He (again) drives the money changers out of the temple courts. He makes enemies. In a few short days the crowds who were crying out ‘Hosanna to the Son of David’ are stirred up to cry out ‘Away with him, crucify him’. This could have, this should have gone so differently! Why?
The Hour Has Come!
Here’s what John records next:
John 12:20 Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. 21 So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. 23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
The hour has come! Starting with his first miracle at Cana (Jn.2:4) , Jesus has consistently said ‘my hour has not yet come’. When his enemies sought to seize him, they could not because ‘his hour had not yet come’ (Jn.7:30; 8:20). Now he says ‘the hour has come’. It’s finally here, the hour for the Son of Man to be glorified!
But how does this answer the Greeks seeking to see Jesus? Here’s what Daniel prophesied about he Son of Man being glorified:
Daniel 7:13 “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. 14 And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.
The divine, cloud riding Son of Man given dominion and glory and an eternal kingdom, a global kingdom by the Ancient of Days, a kingdom that includes all peoples, nations and languages. The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified!
Glorified Like A Seed
But look at what Jesus says next:
John 12:23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.
The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified! But not how you might think. Glorified like a seed, a grain of wheat that falls into the earth and dies. Glorified by losing his life. Jesus would be glorified by dying, by falling into the earth, being buried. But life would spring up out of that grave! Eternal life, unstoppable life, abundantly fruitful life. Good news to the Jew first, and also to the Gentiles!
The crucifixion of Jesus was not a nasty turn of events that if played differently could have been avoided. The crucifixion was precisely how Jesus would be glorified!
Jesus goes on to say:
John 12:27 “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” 30 Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine.
Jesus’ hour had come, the hour for the Son of Man to be glorified. Glorified like a seed, through death; a painful hour. Should he seek to escape this hour? This is the reason for the season; this is the reason for Christmas. This is why Jesus came. He came to be glorified like a seed that must fall into the ground and die in order to bear much fruit, ultimately to bring glory to his Father.
John 12:31 Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out.
The crowds on Palm Sunday anticipated a conquering King, but their expectations were way too low. They wanted a king to judge their enemies; Jesus came to be Judge of the world. They wanted their oppressors to be judged; Jesus came to pass judgment on the whole world; every sinner stands condemned before a holy God. They wanted a powerful king to overthrow Rome. Jesus came to overthrow the power behind Rome and behind every other nation on the planet. They wanted a king who would strip Rome of its power and control over their lives; Jesus came to strip Satan of his power over our lives, to break the power of sin and death and hell, to save sinners from what we deserve. Jesus was not what they expected, so they rejected him.
Drawing All People To Himself
John 12:32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die.
Jesus was about to be lifted up. Exalted. Glorified. But again, not in the way they expected. They expected a throne from which to rule and reign. He was lifted up on a cross, to die. He was lifted up in such a way as to draw all kinds of people to himself. A convicted criminal, being executed along side of him (Lk.23:40-43) looked to Jesus as his only hope beyond the immanent grave, and he was given the promise of eternal life. A hardened military commander, a Roman centurion bowed the knee and confessed ‘surely this was the Son of God’ (Mt.27:54). A rich man, a respected member of the council, Joseph, and Nicodemus, religious leaders, both secret believers because of fear now went public with their faith (Jn.19:38-40). A passionate hater, a persecutor of the church (Ac.9:4-5, 20), Saul confronted by the crucified and risen Jesus, turned and ‘proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God”’. A skeptic, a disillusioned doubter, someone who wanted hard evidence:
John 20:27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” 28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
Jesus glorified like a seed, lifted up to draw all kinds of people to himself. A convicted criminal, a hardened military man, the rich and influential, religious people, fearful people, passionate haters, even persecutors, skeptics, doubters. All sinners. All in need of a savior. And he came to seek and to save, to save now. What about you?
John 3:18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
John 5:25 “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.
John 20:29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” 30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
Friend, what about you, today?
***
Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org
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By Rodney Zedicher2026 03/29 Palm Sunday; Jesus Glorified (John 12);Audio available at: http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20260329_palm-sunday.mp3
Palm Sunday Prophecies
This is Palm Sunday. Old Testament prophecies spoke of the promise of the coming King. Psalm 118 says:
Psalm 118:19 Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the LORD. 20 This is the gate of the LORD; the righteous shall enter through it. 21 I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation. 22 The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. 23 This is the LORD’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. 24 This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. 25 Save us, we pray, O LORD! O LORD, we pray, give us success! 26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD! We bless you from the house of the LORD.
The stone that the builders rejected; the leadership of Israel had rejected Jesus. But he would become the cornerstone. He is foundational to everything. He sets the shape and trajectory of the entire building. This, this is the day! This is the day that we have been waiting for! This is the day that YHWH has made! The long anticipated day has arrived. This is a day of gladness and rejoicing! Hosanna; save us, we pray! Hosanna; save now! Blessed is he who comes in the name of YHWH! YHWH has become my salvation. Open the gates to the King of Righteousness!
Isaiah 62 speaks of Jerusalem established as a praise in the earth; the Lord will delight in her;
Isaiah 62:8 The LORD has sworn by his right hand and by his mighty arm: “I will not again give your grain to be food for your enemies, and foreigners shall not drink your wine for which you have labored; 9 but those who garner it shall eat it and praise the LORD, and those who gather it shall drink it in the courts of my sanctuary.” 10 Go through, go through the gates; prepare the way for the people; build up, build up the highway; clear it of stones; lift up a signal over the peoples. 11 Behold, the LORD has proclaimed to the end of the earth: Say to the daughter of Zion, “Behold, your salvation comes; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.” 12 And they shall be called The Holy People, The Redeemed of the LORD; and you shall be called Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken.
Daughter of Zion, behold your salvation comes!
In Zechariah 9 the Lord says:
Zechariah 9:8 Then I will encamp at my house as a guard, so that none shall march to and fro; no oppressor shall again march over them, for now I see with my own eyes. 9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
John 12; Prophecies Fulfilled
John gives this account of Palm Sunday
John 12:12 The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” 14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written, 15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!” 16 His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.
Matthew, Mark and Luke tell us that Jesus orchestrated this whole thing. He sent two of his disciples into the village to retrieve the donkey’s colt he was to ride on. Old Testament prophecies were being realized before their very eyes. Matthew specifically highlights the intentional fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies. Jesus is consciously presenting himself to Jerusalem as their coming King and their salvation, the King of righteousness, humble and mounted on a donkey.
The religious leaders respond in frustration:
John 12:19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.”
What a day! Fulfillment of prophecies! Jesus publicly presented to Jerusalem as King. Religious leaders losing influence; Jesus receiving the acclaim of the people; momentum is huge; Jerusalem is packed for Passover. ‘Look, the world has gone after him!’ Rejoice! Shout aloud! Behold your King is coming to you!
Anticlimactic Day
Palm Sunday has to be the most anti-climactic day in the history of the world. Mark records it this way in his gospel:
Mark 11:7 And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. 8 And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. 9 And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! 10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!” 11 And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.
Jesus entered the gates to the acclaim of all the people. He entered Jerusalem, went into the temple courts, looked around at everything, and left. He returned to Bethany to spend the night with his disciples. Wait, that’s it? He just looks around and then he walks away? The world has gone after him; finally they acknowledge who he is. This is the day! Ride the wave! Seize the moment!
Instead Jesus walks away. What did the crowds think? The next day he comes back and cleans house. He (again) drives the money changers out of the temple courts. He makes enemies. In a few short days the crowds who were crying out ‘Hosanna to the Son of David’ are stirred up to cry out ‘Away with him, crucify him’. This could have, this should have gone so differently! Why?
The Hour Has Come!
Here’s what John records next:
John 12:20 Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. 21 So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. 23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
The hour has come! Starting with his first miracle at Cana (Jn.2:4) , Jesus has consistently said ‘my hour has not yet come’. When his enemies sought to seize him, they could not because ‘his hour had not yet come’ (Jn.7:30; 8:20). Now he says ‘the hour has come’. It’s finally here, the hour for the Son of Man to be glorified!
But how does this answer the Greeks seeking to see Jesus? Here’s what Daniel prophesied about he Son of Man being glorified:
Daniel 7:13 “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. 14 And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.
The divine, cloud riding Son of Man given dominion and glory and an eternal kingdom, a global kingdom by the Ancient of Days, a kingdom that includes all peoples, nations and languages. The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified!
Glorified Like A Seed
But look at what Jesus says next:
John 12:23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.
The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified! But not how you might think. Glorified like a seed, a grain of wheat that falls into the earth and dies. Glorified by losing his life. Jesus would be glorified by dying, by falling into the earth, being buried. But life would spring up out of that grave! Eternal life, unstoppable life, abundantly fruitful life. Good news to the Jew first, and also to the Gentiles!
The crucifixion of Jesus was not a nasty turn of events that if played differently could have been avoided. The crucifixion was precisely how Jesus would be glorified!
Jesus goes on to say:
John 12:27 “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” 30 Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine.
Jesus’ hour had come, the hour for the Son of Man to be glorified. Glorified like a seed, through death; a painful hour. Should he seek to escape this hour? This is the reason for the season; this is the reason for Christmas. This is why Jesus came. He came to be glorified like a seed that must fall into the ground and die in order to bear much fruit, ultimately to bring glory to his Father.
John 12:31 Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out.
The crowds on Palm Sunday anticipated a conquering King, but their expectations were way too low. They wanted a king to judge their enemies; Jesus came to be Judge of the world. They wanted their oppressors to be judged; Jesus came to pass judgment on the whole world; every sinner stands condemned before a holy God. They wanted a powerful king to overthrow Rome. Jesus came to overthrow the power behind Rome and behind every other nation on the planet. They wanted a king who would strip Rome of its power and control over their lives; Jesus came to strip Satan of his power over our lives, to break the power of sin and death and hell, to save sinners from what we deserve. Jesus was not what they expected, so they rejected him.
Drawing All People To Himself
John 12:32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die.
Jesus was about to be lifted up. Exalted. Glorified. But again, not in the way they expected. They expected a throne from which to rule and reign. He was lifted up on a cross, to die. He was lifted up in such a way as to draw all kinds of people to himself. A convicted criminal, being executed along side of him (Lk.23:40-43) looked to Jesus as his only hope beyond the immanent grave, and he was given the promise of eternal life. A hardened military commander, a Roman centurion bowed the knee and confessed ‘surely this was the Son of God’ (Mt.27:54). A rich man, a respected member of the council, Joseph, and Nicodemus, religious leaders, both secret believers because of fear now went public with their faith (Jn.19:38-40). A passionate hater, a persecutor of the church (Ac.9:4-5, 20), Saul confronted by the crucified and risen Jesus, turned and ‘proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God”’. A skeptic, a disillusioned doubter, someone who wanted hard evidence:
John 20:27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” 28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
Jesus glorified like a seed, lifted up to draw all kinds of people to himself. A convicted criminal, a hardened military man, the rich and influential, religious people, fearful people, passionate haters, even persecutors, skeptics, doubters. All sinners. All in need of a savior. And he came to seek and to save, to save now. What about you?
John 3:18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
John 5:25 “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.
John 20:29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” 30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
Friend, what about you, today?
***
Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org