Echo Divine

if God’s people would take their
Bibles and turn back once again to John chapter 12. John chapter
12. In my many years of working and
applying for jobs and careers and Going through interviews,
I have noted a very familiar approach that interviewers take.
At times, I’ve even used the same approach as I interviewed
prospective employees. And that is to just simply lay
a question on the table, tell me something about yourself. And I’ve taken those opportunities
many times to highlight strengths and even weaknesses and I’ve
heard others stand and articulate about their own strengths and
what we have essentially in the passage in front of us is Christ
laying out His ministry, His calling, His perspective of ministry,
His strengths He outlines His ministry Himself. He doesn’t
wait for others to articulate His ministry or to give Him marching
orders. Jesus Christ knew exactly what
the Father had called Him to do. And in this, there is a kind
of divine echo in this passage. That Jesus Christ lays out His
ministry and then the Father echoes that in affirmation immediately
following. If you would, we find ourselves
in a fascinating transition beginning in verse 20. We are in the literal
day of the triumphal entry. Jesus Christ has just come into
Jerusalem now for the final week, the Passion Week. And in this
particular passage, He is greeted by some new visitors. We begin in verse 20 of chapter
12. Now there were some Greeks among
those who were going up to worship at the feast. These came to Philip,
who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and began to ask him, saying,
Sir, we wish to see Jesus. Philip came and told Andrew.
Andrew and Philip came and told Jesus. And Jesus answered them,
saying, 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. He who loves his life loses it,
and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life
eternal. If anyone serves me, He must
follow me, and where I am, there my servant will be also. If anyone
serves me, the Father will honor him. Now, my soul has become
troubled, and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour?
But for this purpose, I came to this hour. Father, glorify
your name. Then a voice came out of heaven,
I have both glorified it and will glorify it again. So the
crowd of people who stood by and heard it were saying that
it had thundered. Others were saying an angel has
spoken to him. Jesus answered and said, this
voice has not come for my sake, but for your sakes. Now judgment
is upon this world. Now the ruler of this world will
be cast out. And I, if I am lifted up from
the earth, will draw all men to myself.” But he was saying
this to indicate the death, the kind of death by which he was
to die. The crowd then answered him,
we have heard out of the law that the Christ is to remain
forever. And how can you say The Son of
Man must be lifted up. Who is this Son of Man? So Jesus
said to them, for a little while longer, the light is among you.
Walk while you have the light so that darkness will not overtake
you. He who walks in the darkness
does not know where he goes. While you have the light, believe
in the light so that you may become sons of light. Here we are, in the midst of
the triumphal entry, where people have just literally thrown down
their garments and palm fronds in front of Christ as He entered.
And in verse 19, it’s a fascinating transition. The Pharisees said
to one another as they watched this event unfold, the crowds
coming out to greet Christ, fawning over Him, falling all over Him,
hailing Him. The Pharisees lamented and said,
you see, you are not doing any good. Our method hasn’t worked. The world has gone after Him. And we looked at that and there
is hyperbole there. It’s an exaggeration. It wasn’t
the entire world. But when the Jewish leaders saw
the reaction of the people to Christ’s entrance into the city
in what we call the triumphal entry, they gnashed their teeth.
We can almost hear them wondering, could it possibly get any worse? Well, guess what? It just got
worse. Not only are the actual Israelites
by birth going after Jesus, now even their half converted visitors,
their church visitors, turning aside with great interest in
Jesus Christ. Look at verse 20. Now there were
some Greeks. Not just any Greeks, it wasn’t
just that they were Greek-speaking people that happened to be in
town. And the passage lays out with clarity who they are. It was funny that as I read one
commentator, and I just love the way that he wrote this, who
these Greeks were has exercised the conjectural integrity of
commentators. I’m a word guy, so I love that.
In other words, they have been challenged to render a conjection
of who these people might have been. A stab in the dark, if
you will. But if you look at it, God’s
word tells us who they are. Among, there were some Greeks,
among those who were going up to worship at the feast. Their
purpose was to go up and to worship. And this tells us who they were. They weren’t just abject heathen. They were among those who were
going up to worship. That was their purpose on this
occasion. They weren’t just heathen. They
weren’t godless. Because the godless wouldn’t
have been welcomed or admitted into the Passover anyway. They
weren’t just Greek-speaking people. They weren’t even just Gentiles. They were what we would call
proselytes, converts. Gentiles who had heard of the
God of Israel and turned their back, forsaking their pagan gods,
and turned instead to worship the one true God, the God of
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of Israel. But they stopped
short for a variety of reasons, not the least of which was the
Jewish ritual itself. They stopped short of adopting
the full name of the Jewish religion. And as such, they were only allowed
to worship to a degree. In a sense, they were second-class
citizens. They were allowed to come to
the temple but they were allowed to come no further than what
was called the Court of the Gentiles. And then inside of that, there
was another court, and inside of that, ultimately, the Holy
of Holies. So these were converts, proselytes. We would even call them God-fearers. This is how they’re referred
to in the Book of Acts. In the Book of Acts, Listen,
Cornelius, obviously a Gentile with a Greek name, a centurion,
a soldier, who was righteous and God-fearing. The book of
Acts will routinely use that to point to those who were converts
to Judaism, but not full converts. Acts 13, Paul stood up, motioning
with his hand, said, men of Israel and you who fear God. So he was
talking not only to blood-born Jews, but also to those who had
converted. Acts 13.26, later in that same
passage, brethren, sons of Abraham’s family, and those among you who
fear God. Acts 13.43, 17.4, over and over
again, it’s used of those who feared God, who reverenced the
true God, but did so incompletely. They weren’t born as such. into
Judaism, they had adopted it by choice. Well, these, it says,
came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and began
to ask him, saying, Sir, we wish to see Jesus. We don’t know any
reason why they might have been inclined to speak to Philip,
other than the fact that he had a Greek name. Perhaps they had
met him before. Perhaps Philip was kind of on
the perimeter, easy to approach. They desire to see Jesus. And Philip, it says, who seems
to be a shyer sort, Philip came and told Andrew. Andrew, who
was Peter’s brother and only just slightly less outspoken
than Peter, Andrew immediately goes to Christ with the request. Philip came and told Andrew.
Andrew and Philip came and told Jesus. We have this personality
unfolding right before our eyes. Here’s somewhat timid Philip,
afraid to approach Christ with the request, but his mere mention
of it to Andrew sends Andrew immediately to Christ. Now, it’s
not explicitly stated that Jesus grants this request for an interview. When it says that they wanted
to see Christ, they wanted more than just to visually look at
him. They wanted to interact with Him. They wanted to speak
with Him. And as such, I don’t think that it’s out of line to
assume that they did hear what Christ said. Maybe they didn’t
get to interact on a personal level as they had hoped. But
when Christ begins to respond, I believe that these Greeks heard
His testimony of His ministry. Certainly, to speak these things
to the disciples would have had a purpose, but he had already
said almost everything here in verses 23 through 28. He’d already
said it all to the disciples, as we’ll see. They may not have
received the private interview that they were looking for, but
what they heard was the testimony by Christ of his own ministry. They heard from the source itself. what His calling was, what His
ministry was. Jesus Christ here in this passage,
verses 23 through 28, Jesus Christ Himself outlines His ministry. And He does it in these five
quick points. First of all, I want to point
out the purpose which Christ’s death on the cross fulfills. The purpose which Christ’s death
on the cross fulfills. Look at verse 23 if you would. And Jesus answered them saying,
The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Jesus Christ had seen the triumphal
entry. Jesus Christ even planned part
of it. The young donkey on which he
rode. Jesus Christ knew what his hour
was. This wasn’t catching him by surprise. And he knew what was in the heart
of the people, even as we’ve seen. They wanted to appoint
him an earthly king. They wanted their own kind of
Messiah. And that’s what was largely represented
in the triumphal entry. It was the entrance of a king.
They’re kind of king. And so when these Greeks, these
strangers to Christ come and see Him, Jesus Christ knows exactly
the hour. Jesus Christ knows exactly what
is at hand. And as those who desire an earthly
kingdom, Jesus Christ knows that it’s all going to come to a head
this very week. It says that His hour has come,
that Jesus knew that His hour had come. We can’t over-literalize
that to 60 literal minutes. Jesus knows the period of time.
Jesus knows that it’s the season into which He’s entered, where
He will be arrested. tried, crucified, He will be
buried, and ultimately He will be glorified. Now is the time. Now is the hour for Jesus Christ. In this gospel, there’s a contrast. Because up to this point, Jesus’
hour has not yet come. Back in John chapter 7, Jesus
said to those who were approaching Him, is not yet here. John 7, 8, go up to the feast
yourselves. I do not go up to this feast
because my time has not yet fully come. Later on in that same chapter,
John adds his own commentary. The apostle John, they were seeking
to seize him. No man laid his hand on him because
his hour had not yet come. His time had not yet come to
suffer Sacrifice repeated in John 8 20 is our head had not
yet come But now Jesus notices that his hour is at hand now
Jesus notices that it is time for the sacrifice to be made
for all of mankind He knows that he is going to suffer on the
cross and die Jesus knew that his hour had come Jesus knew that glorification
was literally at hand. It wouldn’t be first, but ultimately
all wrapped up into one. Jesus Christ knows that his hour
has come. Secondly, Jesus Christ is outlining himself,
his own ministry. And he not only gives us the
purpose which Christ’s death on the cross fulfills, but he
gives us the principle by which Christ’s death on the cross illustrates,
the principle that it illustrates. And this is so simple. I had occasion yesterday to be
with Lyle at his brother’s wife’s funeral, who was a gardener.
And I just noted that I too am a gardener. That’s a passion
of mine. This is a gardening illustration. Listen to it. The
principle by which Christ’s death on the cross illustrates is this.
Verse 24. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless
a grain of wheat falls into the earth and it dies, it remains
alone. But if it dies, it bears much
fruit. Most of you know I have these beans. They’re beautiful
beans. dark black with purple speckles. They’re just beautiful
to look at. But the whole purpose of them is not to look at them.
And if I keep them in the jar or perhaps if I cook them, they
do a certain function. But one bean, one of those beans
will literally produce dozens and dozens of other beans. And
so there’s always a balance between keeping back some of those beans
for the purpose of planting and cooking and eating those beans,
just as a grain. And it really is general here,
any kind of grain. Jesus here is speaking of wheat,
and wheat is even more plentiful with regards to its production
than a bean. But here he uses the illustration
of wheat. And the kernel literally has
to fall into the earth and begin the process of decay. It has
to get wet, imbibe the moisture, and begin the process of regenerating. Well, that’s the simple illustration.
The seed is going to be put into the ground. It has to rot and
decay. It essentially has to die in
order to produce a crop. We can choose not to bury the
seed. We can choose to keep it back. cook it, what have you. But it’s
function, if it’s going to function as a producer, if it’s going
to function as a fruit bearer, it must be planted. And essentially
that’s what Jesus says is so crucial about his life. That
if I do not die, if I am not planted in the ground, If I do
not go to the cross and bear this death, there will be no
fruitful production from my life. I would be no more than a good
example, he says. Apart from the cross, there is
no blessing, there is no payment of sin, there is no forgiveness,
there is no harvest, spiritually speaking. Paul uses this same
illustration. Remember, he’s talking about
the resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15. Paul’s talking about the
resurrection, and he’s arguing for the resurrection. Apparently,
there were some people that were ready to chuck it, to say that,
you know what, let’s be peaceable. The resurrection, or whether
there’s a resurrection or not, it’s not worth arguing. Not for
the Apostle Paul. The Apostle Paul said this is
the central doctrine of Christianity. 1 Corinthians 15, he says it this
way. Someone will say, how are the dead raised? You’re talking
about a resurrection. What are we going to look like?
Are we going to have the same bodies? What kind of body do they come?
And Paul calls it like it is. He says, you fool. That’s a foolish
question. A foolish question to think that
you’re going to look just like you do now, that your body is
going to be just the same. You fool, that which you sow
does not come to life unless it dies. It’s the same illustration.
And that which you sow does not sow the body which is to be,
but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or something else. In other
words, he says if you want a watermelon, don’t plant a watermelon. Plant
a watermelon seed. If you want corn, you don’t plant
the entire ear, you plant a grain. And he says likewise. the physical body that is placed
into the earth. God gives it a body just as he
wished, and to each of the seeds of the body his own. We’re all
going to take on a spiritual body, he says. The death of Christ
had purpose, it had meaning, it had significance. It was absolutely
necessary. As one faithful pastor said,
the death of Christ was the life of the world. From it a most
prolific seed was to spring an enormous harvest of blessing
to souls and of glory to God. His substitution on the cross,
His atoning death was to be the beginning of untold blessings
to a lost world. To wish Him not to die, to dislike
the idea of his death as the disciples did, was foolish as
to keep seed corn locked up to refuse to sow it. Christ’s vicarious
death is the world’s life. Jesus Christ says, look, in my
ministry, my death is absolutely necessary. Jesus is outlining
His ministry. And we see not only the purpose
which Christ’s death on the cross fulfills, but the principle by
which Christ’s death on the cross illustrates. Thirdly, the pattern
which Christ’s death on the cross establishes. And this is where
you and I come in. Jesus Christ is preaching it,
but it touches us. Jesus Christ is talking about
His ministry but our relationship to that is pronounced. Look at verse 25. He who loves
his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world
will keep it to life eternal. What if Jesus had said, you know
what, I appreciate the need, Father, but I would prefer, I
really have enjoyed this life, I enjoy the cooking, I enjoy
my friends here on earth, I’ll pass on the cross. It’s unthinkable. It’s unthinkable,
and that’s the tie-in. Jesus Christ knew that like a
seed, He must be planted. Jesus Christ knew that He must
lose His life. That verse, verse 24, that can
only apply to Christ alone. Our death benefits nothing. We
don’t save anybody by our individual death, but His one death paid
for the sin of the world. Jesus Christ dies and bears fruit. But there is a principle that
is here for us. There is something applicable
to us. For those who want to hold on
to their life and enjoy their life and preserve their life
When it comes to interface with the gospel, those who choose
their life as over against Christ, as over against God’s Word, as
over against the gospel, those who opt for the things of the
world as opposed to the things of God, that is to lose your
life. But in the midst of what is a
wicked, even fallen world, to see the gospel, to see the
things of God, and to realize that there really is no choice.
There is no choice to choose God, to align ourselves with
God, to adopt the things of God, and love the things of God, and
to place our faith in God alone. That is to hate one’s life here
on the earth and to save one’s life eternally. One commentator
said it this way, the man who loves his life loses it. Loving
the life is a self-defeating process. It destroys the very
life it seeks to retain. And of course, even at the end
of this, when Christ speaks of hating his life, he isn’t speaking
over literally here. It’s a comparison. choosing one
as opposed to the other. It’s as if one hated his life. He loves God and the things of
God so much. That essentially is the paradox
that Christ set up in the cross. That we are to take up our life,
take up our cross, that we are to live with Christ. And the
synoptics, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, address this on a number
of different occasions. What’s fascinating is that John
records it here, the synoptics recorded in completely different
places. Which means that this saying,
this phrase, was probably frequently on the Lord’s lips. He who loves
his life loses it. He who hates his life in this
world will keep it to life eternal. Here’s how Luke said it. where
Luke recorded it, rather. Luke, verse 23 says, he was saying
to them all, if anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny
himself and take up his cross daily. It’s to be a life of sacrifice. It’s to be a life of dying with
Christ. That is the illustration that
we have in Romans 6, right? Dying with Christ, going down,
buried with him, up, raising in baptism to newness of life. He must deny himself, take up
his cross daily and follow me. Listen. For whoever wishes to
save his life will lose it. Same statement. Whoever loses
his life for my namesake is the one who will save it. And it’s
in that context that Jesus adds, for what is a man profited if
he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? Whoever
is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed
of him when he comes in glory, in the glory of the Father and
the holy angels. In other words, if you deny Christ,
if you turn aside from the gospel, if you brush off the things of
God for the things of the world, Jesus Christ establishes this
principle here just once again. that in order to be happy, truly
happy, we need to uproot this idea that
happiness is oriented here in this life. Paul addressed it
in writing to Timothy when he said, it’s a trustworthy statement. If we died with him, we will
live with him. It’s a promise. If we died with
Him, we will also live with Him. If we endure, we will reign with
Him. If we deny Him, He will deny us. There’s a fourth point. As Jesus outlines His ministry
personally, the purpose for which Christ’s death on the cross fulfills,
number one. The second, the principle by
which Christ’s death on the cross illustrates the pattern which
Christ’s death on the cross establishes. Fourthly, The participation that
Christ’s death on the cross entails. And this is where we’re drawn
in even further. That previous principle applies
to us. Loving our life, losing our life.
But here he says that there’s a participation that is entailed
in aligning ourselves with Christ. Look at verse 26. If anyone serves
me, he must follow me. And where I am, there my servant
will be also. If anyone serves me, the Father
will honor him. There is service in following
Christ. There is a necessary element
of service in following Christ. That’s the logical outcome of
following Christ. If we have placed our faith in
the Lordship of Christ if we have aligned with him as our
Savior if we have come to him Repented of our sin and placed
our faith in him the most Natural thing the most logical thing
that’s going to happen is we are going to serve Christ Even
as we serve others We’re not going to be any different than
Christ was and Jesus Christ said that he came to be a servant
That was His whole purpose in coming, is to serve humanity. And what He points to here is
the whole dignity of ministry, the dignity of service. We tend
to look for accolades and rewards and recognition, not Christ. The Son of Man did not come to
be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom
for many. It’s natural. It’s only natural
for those who are servants, that’s what we are, to logically serve
our master. And many of us would willingly
serve Christ. But he’s not on earth anymore. He’s not a visible, tangible
master in that sense. And so we are given largely to
serving Christ by serving one another. And even that, Luke
17, 9 says, isn’t thank worthy. We’re not owed any gratitude
for that. We’re doing only what comes natural. We’re doing only what God commanded
us, Luke 17, 9. I love the way scripture says
it. Do you want to be great? There
are a lot of people, a lot of athletes, a lot of Big businessmen
that claim greatness. They claim, and it’s a natural
thing, we want to be great. Even the disciples argued over
who was the greatest. Jesus says, do you want to be
great? Let me tell you how to be great. Whoever wishes to become
great will be your servant. That’s Christ’s view of ministry. And it’s a rather important element of greatness, because Jesus says
at the end of the age, we will all be called to give an account.
Who gave me a drink of water? Who clothed me when I was naked? Who gave me something to eat
while I was hungry? And there will be those that
have to stand bewildered at what Christ is even talking about.
And Christ will say to those, depart from me. But there will
also be those who had clothed the naked and
fed the hungry and given water to the thirsty just as they would
to Christ. Christ will welcome them into
eternity. J.C. Ryle said, if any man desires
to serve Christ, To be a Christian, he must be content to follow
his master, walk in his footsteps, share his lot, do as he did,
partake of his master’s inheritance in the world. He must not look
for good things here, crowns, kingdoms, riches, honors, wealth,
dignity. Like his master, he must be content
with a cross. There’s a fifth. And final element
is Jesus Christ outlines his ministry. Not only the purpose
which Christ’s death on the cross fulfills, and the principle by
which Christ’s death on the cross illustrates, the pattern which
Christ’s death on the cross establishes, the participation that Christ’s
death on the cross entails. But fifthly, the pain that Christ’s
death on the cross embraces. Look at verse 27. Now my soul has become troubled. As Jesus Christ articulated this
foundational aspect of his ministry, the fact that death on the cross
was absolutely necessary The fact that it was illustrated
by literally a grain of wheat falling in and decaying, coming
apart, dying. The pain that Christ’s death
on the cross embraces is palpable here. Now my soul has become
troubled. Don’t ever think that just because
he was God that this was no big deal. This was easy for him to
do. To go to his death, To literally have the Father place the sin
of the world upon Him? Now my soul has become troubled
and what shall I say? Father save me from this hour?
Is that the approach that you think that I would take? The whole structure, the whole
point of this passage, that statement, points to a kind of a hypothetical
question. Do you really think that I would
say, after all this, after laying out my ministry, do you really
think that I would say, oh Father, if there’s any way? You know what’s fascinating? The Apostle John doesn’t give
an account of the Garden of Gethsemane. This is essentially the equivalent
of what the synoptic writers record in the Garden of Gethsemane. Here’s how Matthew put it, short
and sweet. He went a little beyond them.
He fell on his face and prayed, saying, My father, if it is possible,
let this cup pass from me yet. Not as I will, but as you will. Here, Jesus has already worked
through that emotion. What do you think I’m going to
conclude? Father, save me from this hour? Now, for this purpose, I’ve come.
Jesus Christ embraced the pain. Jesus Christ says, for this very
purpose, I’ve come to this hour. We’re only two alternatives. To reject the first and embrace the plan that the father had
issued, that Jesus Christ would die on the cross for sinners. Jesus Christ couldn’t turn His
back on that. As Jesus Christ lays out personally
His commitment, His ministry, may each of us ponder that in
our own hearts as we come to the Lord’s table. You know what is true? On many
occasions, I admonish people. I start really from the starting
point that you should come to this table. I want to do it a little bit
differently today. You should not come to this table unless, first of all, you have
placed your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. This is not the
table of pretend Christianity. This is the table of the Lord
Jesus Christ. Secondly, you should not come
to this table. Unless you have willingly dealt
with the sin in your life. If you are unwilling to deal
with the sin in your life, that is hypocrisy and to come to the
Lord’s table and to make a mockery of it is a shameful thing and
a dangerous thing. You should not come to the Lord’s
table unless, as our Constitution states, and I believe it’s a
biblical principle, unless you are a member in good standing
of a like-minded church. This isn’t just for anybody.
We don’t just play church. This is for those who are in
Christ and willing to be peaceable and to walk with Christ and Christ
people in peaceable fashion. Fourth, and I add this one intentionally,
you should not come to the Lord’s table if you’re a child. You should not come to the Lord’s
table if you’re a child and you have not made a profession of
faith. or having made a profession of faith, you have not communicated
that to your parents, or if you’ve communicated it to your parents,
but have not yet talked to the elders, you should not partake
in the Lord’s table. We have the privilege of hosting
one additional young person this morning who will be partaking
of the Lord’s table for the very first time. What an exciting
thing for a young person But we don’t wanna be flippant
about that. You should not come to the Lord’s
table. If you haven’t placed your faith in Christ, if you’re
not willing to walk with God’s people, if you’re not willing
to deal with sin, if you’re not willing to make a testimony to
your own parents and the elders of the church, you should not
come to the Lord’s table. If those things are true of you,
you should not come to the Lord’s table. But if you’ve placed your
faith in Christ, if you’re willing and eager to deal with your sin,
If you’re a member in good standing, if you have told your parents
and the elders, then you should partake of the Lord’s table.
What a joyous occasion. Would you prepare your hearts
in prayer? Our merciful King, we humble
ourselves in your glorious presence. And we thank you that you so
clearly outlined your ministry and articulated the principles
that drive your ministry. Lord God, as we come, we do seek
to align with you. If there are any here who even
just now are led to place their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ
for salvation, Lord, that is enough. They stand before you. They don’t stand before some
ecclesiastical body. Lord, if someone places their
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, if they are ready today to turn
their back on sin and to place their faith in Christ and to
walk with Him in His grace, Lord, any of those would be welcome
at the Lord’s table. And we rejoice with all who are
fitted by God’s grace to partake of the Lord’s table this day.
Lord, we ask your blessing on our time. It’s in Jesus’ name
that we pray, amen.