John 12, 13, 14

John 12, 13, 14

Overview:  John's Palm Sunday account.  Followed by John's Last Supper account - Jesus washes the disciples feet.

"The Pharisees then said to one another, 'You see, you can do nothing.  Look the world has gone after him.'"(12:19)
This line jumps off the page.  It's reminds me of when they put a microphone on the coaches during a basketball game.  On occasion, instead of getting a carefully considered and worded statement from the coach the microphone will catch the true thoughts and feelings of the person wearing the mic.  Instead of the polite or brave public face you hear the real plan for attacking the other team or the real frustration the coach is feeling with one (or more) of the players.  So here are the Pharisees caught saying what they really think.  Not the "for public consumption" taking Jesus to task for healing that person on the Sabbath or for making some claim about who he is and who God is, but a relevatory moment - a window into their true thoughts and deepest fears.  "You see, you can do nothing.  Look the world has gone after him."  They feel things slipping away.  People are responding less and less to their institutional authority and more and more to this upstart preacher from the Galilee and his unorthodox methods and practices.  They are uneasy and this can't be allowed to go on unchecked.  When we really encounter Jesus we can probably identify with both the people who are captivated by him and with the Pharisees who have issues with him.  Jesus personality and message are magnetic and compelling - we sense that in following him there is freedom.  At the same time there is clearly something revolutionary here that pushes back the boundaries of what we've come to think of as normal behavior and practices.  Jesus doesn't want us to live life as usual and sometimes life as usual may be predictable and boring, but it is also comfortable and secure if imperfect.  The truly dazzling moments for us occur when we summon the courage or give in to the curiosity to follow Jesus up the road.