Gospel for March 17, 2024

START WITH SCRIPTURE:
John 12:20-33
CLICK HERE TO READ SCRIPTURE ON BIBLEGATEWAY.COM

OBSERVE:

This is a difficult passage, especially for Western Christians who love life and all it has to offer.

It begins with the overtures from Gentiles, specifically Greeks, who have obviously heard all the hullaballoo about this wonderworker from Nazareth, and are curious to see him.  Jesus has just entered into the city in the triumphal entry, accompanied by crowds shouting “Hosanna!” and waving palm branches.  No doubt the Greeks’ interest has been aroused.

We know from sources outside of scripture that the Greeks had a reputation as folks who were interested in learning about other cultures and world views — e.g., Herodotus.  Were these Greeks interested in Jesus from a purely academic point of view, or was their interest more spiritual?

The disciples seem a little flustered by their request.  John’s description almost makes them seem like teenagers getting on the phone to report the latest gossip! Philip tells Andrew, and then together they go to tell Jesus.  But this has been a pattern since the beginning, when Andrew went and told Simon Peter about Jesus (John 1:40-41); and Philip went and found Nathaniel (John 1:45). And then again when Andrew brings the boy to Jesus with five barley loaves and two fish, wherewith Jesus feeds the five thousand (John 6:8-9).

Jesus’ answer to them is interesting.

The time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

It is as though this news is a kind of cue to him that he is now to be crucified, and then raised to life.  It is as though the Gentile seekers are the prompt to him that indicates that his message is now about to “go viral,” so to speak, in the sense that the Gospel will be spread to the non-Jewish nations as well.

And now comes the “hard saying” of Jesus.  His metaphor of the grain of wheat that must die and be buried in the ground in order to produce more grain seems to make sense — so it is with his own death and resurrection. Fine so far.

But then Jesus shocks us:

He who loves his life will lose it. He who hates his life in this world will keep it to eternal life.

This is paradoxical to us.  But it is not the first time we hear this teaching in the New Testament:

If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, and whoever will lose his life for my sake will find it (Matthew 16:24-25).

This appears in all three of the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke).  Paul also says he is crucified with Christ and says I die daily.

I will address this more directly in the Apply section, but it is clear that without dying to self, true life is not possible.  This is grounded in the theology of the cross — without crucifixion, there can be no resurrection.

This seems the moment in the Gospel of John that Jesus has his “Gethsemane” long before the Upper Room and the actual departure to the Garden of Gethsemane:

Now my soul is troubled. What shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this time?’ But for this cause I came to this time. Father, glorify your name!

Jesus confesses the same misgivings that are expressed in the other Gospels.

Only here, God the Father gives the Son clear affirmation, as his voice declares:

Then there came a voice out of the sky, saying, “I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.”

This has echoes of the Transfiguration passage that appears in all three of the Synoptic Gospels.

Jesus makes clear that this affirmation from the Father is not for his sake, but for the disciples’ sake.  Then he sums up what his saving work will accomplish — the judgment has come, with the direct result that the ruler of this world will be defeated — i.e., Satan, who has held this world in thrall since the fall.  And Jesus declares the method by which this will be accomplished — by his own cross:

And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.

This is a fitting close to this passage — it begins with the Greeks seeking Jesus; and ends with Jesus promising that his death will draw all peoples to him.  His ministry and message will be global!

APPLY:  

There are several levels at which we can apply this passage.

• The hunger for truth that motivates the Greeks to seek Jesus.
• The mission of evangelism, which is simply to bring people to Jesus.
• The focus on the cross.

So, why not focus on the most difficult aspect of this passage?

He who loves his life will lose it. He who hates his life in this world will keep it to eternal life.

On the one hand, this is a statement of brutal fact — no matter how much we love our lives, we will all die.  We will lose it.  But Jesus obviously means more than this.

I fear that articulating this may be well beyond me, but let me try.  Life is good, and beautiful, and pleasurable.  How well we know this, especially those of us who are Christians in the West.  And it is life-affirming for us to give thanks for all the good gifts that God has given us.

However, even the best gifts in this world fade, decay, and wither away. If we focus on those gifts as the source of our joy and meaning, we may well lose sight of the Giver of those gifts.  And when the good things are gone, our joy will be gone as well.

So, when we love our lives as though only this life matters, we tend to forget that everything that we have and are will one day be lost. But if our focus is beyond these gifts, and we are prepared to let go of them, then they no longer control us.  Our focus becomes the life that exists beyond those things that are transient.  The permanent, real life of the eternal.

This is one of the reasons that we practice self-denial and fasting, by the way — so that we can remind ourselves not to be bound by our appetites.  It also helps for us to learn to give away those things that we may prize the most, so that we wean ourselves away from their control in our lives.

RESPOND: 

I took a confirmation class to a Roman Catholic church one time.  I thought it would be good for those Methodist kids to see that there were other Christians than themselves.  It was there that the priest, a very affable and fun guy, said a most interesting thing: “The reason I wear black all the time is because I’m supposed to be dead to the world.”

Wow.  I knew this priest as a joker, a guy who enjoyed other people, who had a good time.  And yet, he had learned to hold everything lightly, to be ready to let go at a moment’s notice.

It reminded me of something that I learned long ago — that I will one day lose everything I have, everything I own, every person that I love.  The only thing that will endure is my relationship with God, and whatever touches the real life of God.

Lord, I love my life — but I will lose it, and everything I associate with it.  I know that.  If I have to die in order to live, then it will only be by your grace.  Help me to let go of those things that hold on to me; help me to give up control of those things that tend to control me.  Amen.  

Gospel for March 21, 2021

START WITH SCRIPTURE:
John 12:20-33
CLICK HERE TO READ SCRIPTURE ON BIBLEGATEWAY.COM

OBSERVE:

This is a difficult passage, especially for Western Christians who love life and all it has to offer.

It begins with the overtures from Gentiles, specifically Greeks, who have obviously heard all the hullaballoo about this wonderworker from Nazareth, and are curious to see him.  Jesus has just entered into the city in the triumphal entry, accompanied by crowds shouting “Hosanna!” and waving palm branches.  No doubt the Greeks’ interest has been aroused.

We know from sources outside of scripture that the Greeks had a reputation as folks who were interested in learning about other cultures and world views — e.g., Herodotus.  Were these Greeks interested in Jesus from a purely academic point of view, or was their interest more spiritual?

The disciples seem a little flustered by their request.  John’s description almost makes them seem like teenagers getting on the phone to report the latest gossip! Philip tells Andrew, and then together they go to tell Jesus.  But this has been a pattern since the beginning, when Andrew went and told Simon Peter about Jesus (John 1:40-41); and Philip went and found Nathaniel (John 1:45). And then again when Andrew brings the boy to Jesus with five barley loaves and two fish, wherewith Jesus feeds the five thousand (John 6:8-9).

Jesus’ answer to them is interesting.

The time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

It is as though this news is a kind of cue to him that he is now to be crucified, and then raised to life.  It is as though the Gentile seekers are the prompt to him that indicates that his message is now about to “go viral,” so to speak, in the sense that the Gospel will be spread to the non-Jewish nations as well.

And now comes the “hard saying” of Jesus.  His metaphor of the grain of wheat that must die and be buried in the ground in order to produce more grain seems to make sense — so it is with his own death and resurrection. Fine so far.

But then Jesus shocks us:

He who loves his life will lose it. He who hates his life in this world will keep it to eternal life.

This is paradoxical to us.  But it is not the first time we hear this teaching in the New Testament:

If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, and whoever will lose his life for my sake will find it (Matthew 16:24-25).

This appears in all three of the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke).  Paul also says he is crucified with Christ and says I die daily.

I will address this more directly in the Apply section, but it is clear that without dying to self, true life is not possible.  This is grounded in the theology of the cross — without crucifixion, there can be no resurrection.

This seems the moment in the Gospel of John that Jesus has his “Gethsemane” long before the Upper Room and the actual departure to the Garden of Gethsemane:

Now my soul is troubled. What shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this time?’ But for this cause I came to this time. Father, glorify your name!

Jesus confesses the same misgivings that are expressed in the other Gospels.

Only here, God the Father gives the Son clear affirmation, as his voice declares:

Then there came a voice out of the sky, saying, “I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.”

This has echoes of the Transfiguration passage that appears in all three of the Synoptic Gospels.

Jesus makes clear that this affirmation from the Father is not for his sake, but for the disciples’ sake.  Then he sums up what his saving work will accomplish — the judgment has come, with the direct result that the ruler of this world will be defeated — i.e., Satan, who has held this world in thrall since the fall.  And Jesus declares the method by which this will be accomplished — by his own cross:

And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.

This is a fitting close to this passage — it begins with the Greeks seeking Jesus; and ends with Jesus promising that his death will draw all peoples  to him.  His ministry and message will be global!

APPLY:  

There are several levels at which we can apply this passage.

• The hunger for truth that motivates the Greeks to seek Jesus.
• The mission of evangelism, which is simply to bring people to Jesus.
• The focus on the cross.

So, why not focus on the most difficult aspect of this passage?

He who loves his life will lose it. He who hates his life in this world will keep it to eternal life.

On the one hand, this is a statement of brutal fact — no matter how much we love our lives, we will all die.  We will lose it.  But Jesus obviously means more than this.

I fear that articulating this may be well beyond me, but let me try.  Life is good, and beautiful, and pleasurable.  How well we know this, especially those of us who are Christians in the West.  And it is life-affirming for us to give thanks for all the good gifts that God has given us.

However, even the best gifts in this world fade, decay, and wither away. If we focus on those gifts as the source of our joy and meaning, we may well lose sight of the Giver of those gifts.  And when the good things are gone, our joy will be gone as well.

So, when we love our lives as though only this life matters, we tend to forget that everything that we have and are will one day be lost. But if our focus is beyond these gifts, and we are prepared to let go of them, then they no longer control us.  Our focus becomes the life that exists beyond those things that are transient.  The permanent, real life of the eternal.

This is one of the reasons that we practice self-denial and fasting, by the way — so that we can remind ourselves not to be bound by our appetites.  It also helps for us to learn to give away those things that we may prize the most, so that we wean ourselves away from their control in our lives.

RESPOND: 

I took a confirmation class to a Roman Catholic church one time.  I thought it would be good for those Methodist kids to see that there were other Christians than themselves.  It was there that the priest, a very affable and fun guy, said a most interesting thing: “The reason I wear black all the time is because I’m supposed to be dead to the world.”

Wow.  I knew this priest as a joker, a guy who enjoyed other people, who had a good time.  And yet, he had learned to hold everything lightly, to be ready to let go at a moment’s notice.

It reminded me of something that I learned long ago — that I will one day lose everything I have, everything I own, every person that I love.  The only thing that will endure is my relationship with God, and whatever touches the real life of God.

Lord, I love my life — but I will lose it, and everything I associate with it.  I know that.  If I have to die in order to live, then it will only be by your grace.  Help me to let go of those things that hold on to me; help me to give up control of those things that tend to control me.  Amen.  

PHOTOS:
"Look for yourself, Look for God" uses this photo:
“8/52 Don't wait for me. [E-X-P-L-O-R-E-D]” by Kevin Lallier is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.