THE PROMISE of LIFE

 

March 21, 2024

John 12:20-33



Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 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. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 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.

“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. Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine. Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die.

THE PROMISE of LIFE

John dedicates a considerable amount of his Gospel to the last six days of Jesus’ life. In John 12, Jesus predicts “what kind of death he was going to die”, a death whose outcome would be to loosen Satan’s grip on the world, raise Jesus in victory from the horrors of the crucifixion and grave, and draw people from all over the world to him (v. 32).

From the early days of his ministry in John, Jesus has been referring to his “hour”, the appointed time when he would undergo suffering and death for the sins of the world. But through this “humbling of himself” Jesus also remarkably radiates the “glory” of God to humankind. God “glorifies his name” not only through the earthly ministry of Jesus but also his death. In fact, John foreshadows this reality of glory early on in the Gospel at John 1:14, “the word became flesh” passage in which the verse concludes with “we have seen (or ‘beheld’) his glory … full of grace and truth” (1:14).

Something else strikes me in our reading, and it is the very human Jesus we encounter here. Look at the honesty! Transparent enough to admit “now is my soul troubled” (v. 27) as he starts to feel the agony he is about to undergo. What an amazing picture of a person completely abandoned to God in the face of unspeakable pain and suffering, knowing that God’s glory ultimately is the only thing that matters.

And it becomes a teachable moment for the disciples too. They are reminded that seeds are living things that must die to reproduce; they carry the promise of future life. Seeds provide the perfect illustration of what is unfolding before the disciples very eyes. On the surface, Christ’s death looks to the world like a disappointing disaster, but by falling “into the earth” (v. 24), he is able to raise up and give life to followers and bring many “daughter and sons” to glory (Hebrews 2:10).

However, lets also take note that following Christ carries a cost: many of the original disciples were to die severe agonizing deaths themselves. Peter in his letter tells us that Jesus’ disciples in fact must always “die” to themselves to find “living hope” (1 Peter 1:3-5) in Christ.

Father, glorify your name”.… 

“I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”

LET US PRAY

Risen Lord, you loved us so much that you died to save us. We pray that this reality leads us to praise you always and gives us a boldness to live fully abandoned to your loving will. In your name we pray. Amen.