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John 12:20-33
Jesus Predicts His Death
20 Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the Feast. 21 They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.
23 Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.
27 “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name!”
Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.
30 Jesus said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine.31 Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.
On this Tuesday of Holy Week, our gospel reading comes from John’s account of the final days of Jesus’ earthly ministry. Jesus has already entered the city of Jerusalem in his “Triumphal Entry,” which we remembered and celebrated on Palm Sunday. He is now drawing close to the time of his arrest and crucifixion.
Our passage for today begins with the appearance of “some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the Feast.” The “feast” referred to here is the Passover. By the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry, people came from all over the ancient near east to be in Jerusalem for the major holy days like the Passover. There were hundreds of thousands of Jews living in other countries in Asia, Africa and Southeastern Europe, and it was considered a religious obligation to go to Jerusalem for the Passover whenever possible. There were also gentiles (called “God fearers”), who studied the Hebrew scriptures and tried to follow the Law of God, but who had not become formal converts to Judaism. (That step required circumcision, which many gentiles declined to undergo.)
In John’s account of the Triumphal Entry, some of the Jewish leaders are said to complain that “the whole world has gone after” Jesus. It had been prophesied that the Messiah would draw followers from beyond the Jewish people. This passage suggests that Jesus interpreted the appearance of the Greeks as a signal that those prophesies were being fulfilled.
He also seemed to regard their appearance as a confirmation that the time had come for his suffering and death. You might remember that Jesus said that when he was “lifted up,” the whole world would be drawn to him. By “being lifted up,” Jesus was apparently referring to his crucifixion. And he begins to reflect on the events that are about to unfold. He says that his death will be like the planting of a kernel of wheat, which dies to produce many more seeds. Then Jesus calls on his disciples to be willing to lay down their lives, as well, in the service of his mission. He uses a figure of speech that appears throughout the gospel accounts of his ministry, saying that anyone who clings to their earthly life will lose it, but anyone who sacrifices their earthly life for his sake will have eternal life.
Jesus then admits that the prospect of suffering and death is troubling to him. But as troubling as it is, he will not ask to be rescued from this fate, because it was exactly for this purpose that he came into the world. He says that by this suffering and death, three important things will happen: First, Jesus and God will both be glorified. Second, the world will be drawn to him. And third, a victory over evil – characterized here as “the prince of this world” – will be won.
Then, John reports, the voice of God sounds into the world as thunder to confirm Jesus’ foretelling of all that was soon to take place.
It seems to me that this passage brings into sharp focus the meaning of the events that were unfolding around Jesus as his earthly ministry came to a close. His suffering and death is shown not to be some random act of human sinfulness. Instead, it’s an element of God’s plan for establishing the heavenly kingdom on earth. And it’s in this act of self-sacrifice that Jesus was about to perform that God’s glory is most clearly made known. This glory isn’t the glory of a warrior-king coming to smash down his enemies, but rather the glory of one who loves us so much that he is willing to come into a suffering world, and suffer along with us.
And finally, the passion and death of Jesus are meant to be a challenge to those of us who follow him – a challenge to be prepared to sacrifice ourselves for his glory, just as he was prepared to sacrifice himself for the glory of the father, and to reconcile us to the Father who had sent him to us.
Let’s pray. Lord, as we continue through this holy week, remembering the final days of Jesus’ ministry and his approaching suffering and death, help us to remember not just what happened, but also what it meant to the world, and what it means to each of us as his followers. Amen.
Grace and Peace,
Henry
(The other readings for today are Psalm 25 and 91; Jeremiah 15:10-21; and Philippians 3:15-21. Our readings come from the NIV Bible, as posted on Biblica.com, the website of the International Bible Society.)
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