John 12:20-26
Coming to Christ
Today we’re going to look at some Gentiles, some non-Jews, who want to meet with Jesus Christ personally. They want to come to Christ. And really chapter 12 has had that kind of theme; people have been coming to Jesus Christ. Mary came and worshipped at His feet in verse 3. Large crowds came out to see Him while He was in Bethany verse 9 tells us. Then thousands of people turned out to see Him as He entered humbly into Jerusalem according to verse 13. And in verse 18 we read that, “many people who had heard that Jesus had given the miraculous sign of raising Lazarus went out to meet Him.”
Listen, a lot of people come out to see Christ, but, they don’t come to Him. They like to be around Him but they are not with Him. But there is a wonderful invitation at the end of the Bible to everyone who hears. In Revelation 22:17 it says, “The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ And let him who is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes let him take the free gift of the water of life.” The difference between coming out to see Christ and coming to Christ is that those who come to Christ have received what He’s offering.
I want us to see 4 aspects of coming to Christ: Diligently Seeking, Death of the Son, Death of Self, and Dedicated Servant
Diligently Seeking (v20-22)
First, in coming to Christ, we are to be Diligently Seeking Him. Notice verses 20-22, “Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the Feast. They came to Philip who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. ‘Sir,’ they said, ‘we would like to see Jesus.’ Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.”
John tells us there are some Greeks who were seeking Jesus. This is an entirely Jewish setting: it’s Jesus, the Jewish Messiah entering into Jerusalem, the Jewish Holy City. It’s during the Passover week, the most important of all Jewish Feasts. Crammed into Jerusalem are millions of Jews from all over. This is a Jewish scene, and, yet there are Gentiles who are seeking the one true God. This was not uncommon as Josephus, the Jewish historian, tells us that there were many Gentiles who would come to the Feasts and many who were converts to Judaism. God never intended for salvation to remain with the nation of Israel.
Now notice 3 important things about Seeking Christ:
First, be in the right place. These Gentiles came to the place where the true God was. In other words, seeking Christ means seeking out the place where you can find Him. What does that mean? Isn’t God everywhere? Of course He is, but what I mean is that you’ve got to be in a place where you can find the true knowledge of God. Position yourself to hear the true God. You’re in a place like that right now, we preach the Word at EFC. God’s Word is first in this place and if you want to seek God and hear from Him you’ve got to be where His Word is preached. Some people try to find God in the wrong places, ……………….
Second, be persistent. These Gentiles were not satisfied just coming to a place of worship. They weren’t satisfied just being converts to the Jewish religion. They hungered and thirsted for more than just religion. Jesus said in chapter 6, “He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.”
We have to hunger and thirst for more than just Sunday morning religion. We have to persist in our faith beyond the externals of religion. I think these Gentiles wanted to bring their entire selves to Christ and that is what we need to do. Every part of who we are must cry out with the Psalmist, “My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” Persistence in coming to Christ.
Third, be around the right people to get to the right Person. They go to those who were closest to Jesus. They sought the disciples. Often when we seek the Lord in a matter we need to be near those who are near to Him. Searching His Word, praying, and godly people who have a close walk with Christ. Be around the right people.
Death of the Son (v23-24)
Secondly, in coming to Christ we need the Death of the Son. The Son of God. Notice verses 23-24, “Jesus replied, ‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you the truth, 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.’”
Jesus is talking about His death. Now notice two important things about Jesus’ death.
First, His death was glorious. For 12 chapters His hour had not yet come. Finally, it is here. What John’s gospel has been leading up to, and really, what all of history has been leading up to, and what God’s plans have been leading up to are finally here. Galatians 4:4 says that “When the fullness of time had come, God sent His Son…”
The time has come for His glory. He is referring to His death. Why would His death be glorious? After all the Bible refers to His death as a very shameful and disgraceful experience. Philippians 2 talks about crucifixion being such a humble and embarrassing way to die. Hebrews 12 says it is shameful. In the eyes of humanity the death of Jesus was shameful.
But the cross of Jesus Christ is where the glory of God was going to be displayed. God’s glory is the manifestation of His divine attributes. His glory is the expression of who He is and He is glorious because He is totally and supremely unique. There is no one like God. When God reveals His glory it is totally supreme. And in the cross you have the expression of God’s glorious attributes in perfection.
His glorious love is expressed there. Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.” In other words, a love that no one on earth has ever known was expressed at the cross. It’s the love that God has for us and expressed to us by sending His Son as the total sacrifice for our sins. He totally paid for all our debt of sin. He totally endured all our punishment for our sins. So if you want to see the highest and most supreme love possible you mustn’t look to anyone in this world – you must look to the cross. For God so loved the world that He gave His One and Only Son….. He gave Him, what did He give Him to? He gave His Son over to the cross and He gave Him so that He could have you. No greater love has anyone than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. Jesus laid down His life for you. Supreme, divine love. Glorious love.
His glorious justice was expressed at the cross. God is holy and man is sinful. And because God is holy He must punish sin; His holiness will come violently up against sin and destroy it. But what God did was provide a substitute for man so man would not be destroyed. God offered His own holy Son to come and to take all of man’s sins upon Himself. And in doing so God punished His own Son instead of man. In doing so God satisfied His just wrath on sin. In doing so man can be cleared of the charges against him - if he would but turn and trust in Jesus Christ.
Then we see that God’s glorious wisdom is expressed in the cross. Man’s sins separate him from God who is holy. How could sinful man ever possibly have any hope of being with the All-Holy God? Only if his sins are removed from him. And it is at the cross that that was accomplished.
Second Corinthians 5:21 says, “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” In the death of Jesus Christ is the glorious genius of God. He alone had the wisdom to offer the solution where His justice could be satisfied and we could be spared. “It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God.” (1 Cor. 1:30).
Secondly His death causes growth. Jesus uses a seed illustration to describe His death. The seed’s purpose is to grow fruit. Its purpose is not to simply remain a seed. But before a seed can grow fruit it must die. The seed is planted into the ground where it dies and then the life within it is released and grows and produces fruit.
Jesus was teaching the important spiritual principle that that without death there is no life. The kind of life that Jesus came to give required a death to come first. He came to give life but that life could not be given to anyone until He died first. Without His death first, there is no fruit of life in anyone else’s life. Like the seed planted in the ground to die, Jesus had to plant His dead body in the grave so that the life that is His could be given to others. Because of His death, His life is growing all over the world.
Death of Self (v25)
Now next we see the Death of Self. Look with me at verse 25, “The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.”
What Jesus is saying is that if you want eternal life something about you has to die. This verse follows immediately after Jesus’ illustration of the seed. That principle applies not only to Jesus’ mission, but, it also applies to the man who comes to Christ. Without death there is no life. Unless you die to yourself you will not come alive in Christ. Listen to these verses:
Romans 6: “Now if we died with Christ, we believe we will also live with Him….In the same way count yourselves dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.”
Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
Colossians 3:3-4, “For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”
What Jesus is saying is that there’s no room for you when you come to Him. You can’t come to Christ and be self-centered. You can’t be all about you. You can’t make you the most important person in the universe. If you do, you won’t get what He’s offering. The you that says, “I will live how I want” must die. The you that says, “I will pursue my ambitions and my goals” must die. The you that says, “I’m good enough” must die. The you that exalts you must die so that Christ may be exalted in you.
The key to that is you have to hate your life so much that you don’t want it anymore. You have to see yourself for who God says you are in your sin and be ashamed of who you are apart from Jesus. You have to realize that without Christ you are hopeless. Paul said everything he was without Christ was garbage. He was a wretch.
It’s only when a man sees his life like that is when he can look to Christ for new life. Only then would he be ready to cast off his old self to take up new life in Christ. You have to come to Christ hating your life. It’s really only at that point that you’re willing to give your life up. And its only then that Christ will give you His eternal life.
Christ’s death was totally unselfish. He gave up His glory to come in humility. He gave up His wealth to become poor. He gave up His life. He died in a most disgraceful way …on a cross. Our death to ourselves is a very unselfish act. We give up our self to someone else entirely. We entirely trust ourselves to someone else in order to have what He is offering.
Conclusion:
Dedicated Servant (v26)
You know what salvation produces? A Dedicated Servant. Verse 26 says, “Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.”
Jesus is talking about Dedicated Servant. He makes two points about dedicated servant. First, he is humble. “Whoever serves Me must follow Me; and where I am my servant will also be…” Being a servant to Christ means you serve someone other than you. You serve Him. Where He goes you go. Where He is you are.
Do you know what that means? That means that self dies. It happens when we came to Christ for salvation, but, the Christian life is one where we continually choose to die to self and deny all it wants so that we can take up our new life and put on our new self in Christ, “which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.”
I read about some Christians who had visited a remote mission station to see how the ministry was going. As they watched the dedicated missionary team at work, they were impressed with their ministry, but admitted that they missed “civilization.” One of the visitors said to the missionary team, “You certainly have buried yourself out here!” And one of the missionaries said, “We haven’t buried ourselves, we were planted!”
The second point about the Dedicated Servant is that he will be honored. “My Father will honor the one who serves me.” Why does He throw that in there? Because Jesus knows the cost of following Him.
The world crucified Him!
What will they do with those who follow Him?!
Jesus is giving a promise to those who faithfully follow Him that no matter how much the world dishonors and disgraces them for following Him, His Father will honor them. Jesus said in Mark 8, “If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this sinful and adulterous generation , the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in His Father’s glory with the holy angels.” The promise is that the world will shame you for following Christ. The promise is that God will honor you if you faithfully and unashamedly follow Him. Expect shame. But also expect honor in due time.
Coming to Christ requires: Diligently Seek Him, Death of the Son, Death of Self, and Dedicated Service.
Coming to Christ
Today we’re going to look at some Gentiles, some non-Jews, who want to meet with Jesus Christ personally. They want to come to Christ. And really chapter 12 has had that kind of theme; people have been coming to Jesus Christ. Mary came and worshipped at His feet in verse 3. Large crowds came out to see Him while He was in Bethany verse 9 tells us. Then thousands of people turned out to see Him as He entered humbly into Jerusalem according to verse 13. And in verse 18 we read that, “many people who had heard that Jesus had given the miraculous sign of raising Lazarus went out to meet Him.”
Listen, a lot of people come out to see Christ, but, they don’t come to Him. They like to be around Him but they are not with Him. But there is a wonderful invitation at the end of the Bible to everyone who hears. In Revelation 22:17 it says, “The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ And let him who is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes let him take the free gift of the water of life.” The difference between coming out to see Christ and coming to Christ is that those who come to Christ have received what He’s offering.
I want us to see 4 aspects of coming to Christ: Diligently Seeking, Death of the Son, Death of Self, and Dedicated Servant
Diligently Seeking (v20-22)
First, in coming to Christ, we are to be Diligently Seeking Him. Notice verses 20-22, “Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the Feast. They came to Philip who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. ‘Sir,’ they said, ‘we would like to see Jesus.’ Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.”
John tells us there are some Greeks who were seeking Jesus. This is an entirely Jewish setting: it’s Jesus, the Jewish Messiah entering into Jerusalem, the Jewish Holy City. It’s during the Passover week, the most important of all Jewish Feasts. Crammed into Jerusalem are millions of Jews from all over. This is a Jewish scene, and, yet there are Gentiles who are seeking the one true God. This was not uncommon as Josephus, the Jewish historian, tells us that there were many Gentiles who would come to the Feasts and many who were converts to Judaism. God never intended for salvation to remain with the nation of Israel.
Now notice 3 important things about Seeking Christ:
First, be in the right place. These Gentiles came to the place where the true God was. In other words, seeking Christ means seeking out the place where you can find Him. What does that mean? Isn’t God everywhere? Of course He is, but what I mean is that you’ve got to be in a place where you can find the true knowledge of God. Position yourself to hear the true God. You’re in a place like that right now, we preach the Word at EFC. God’s Word is first in this place and if you want to seek God and hear from Him you’ve got to be where His Word is preached. Some people try to find God in the wrong places, ……………….
Second, be persistent. These Gentiles were not satisfied just coming to a place of worship. They weren’t satisfied just being converts to the Jewish religion. They hungered and thirsted for more than just religion. Jesus said in chapter 6, “He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.”
We have to hunger and thirst for more than just Sunday morning religion. We have to persist in our faith beyond the externals of religion. I think these Gentiles wanted to bring their entire selves to Christ and that is what we need to do. Every part of who we are must cry out with the Psalmist, “My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” Persistence in coming to Christ.
Third, be around the right people to get to the right Person. They go to those who were closest to Jesus. They sought the disciples. Often when we seek the Lord in a matter we need to be near those who are near to Him. Searching His Word, praying, and godly people who have a close walk with Christ. Be around the right people.
Death of the Son (v23-24)
Secondly, in coming to Christ we need the Death of the Son. The Son of God. Notice verses 23-24, “Jesus replied, ‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you the truth, 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.’”
Jesus is talking about His death. Now notice two important things about Jesus’ death.
First, His death was glorious. For 12 chapters His hour had not yet come. Finally, it is here. What John’s gospel has been leading up to, and really, what all of history has been leading up to, and what God’s plans have been leading up to are finally here. Galatians 4:4 says that “When the fullness of time had come, God sent His Son…”
The time has come for His glory. He is referring to His death. Why would His death be glorious? After all the Bible refers to His death as a very shameful and disgraceful experience. Philippians 2 talks about crucifixion being such a humble and embarrassing way to die. Hebrews 12 says it is shameful. In the eyes of humanity the death of Jesus was shameful.
But the cross of Jesus Christ is where the glory of God was going to be displayed. God’s glory is the manifestation of His divine attributes. His glory is the expression of who He is and He is glorious because He is totally and supremely unique. There is no one like God. When God reveals His glory it is totally supreme. And in the cross you have the expression of God’s glorious attributes in perfection.
His glorious love is expressed there. Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.” In other words, a love that no one on earth has ever known was expressed at the cross. It’s the love that God has for us and expressed to us by sending His Son as the total sacrifice for our sins. He totally paid for all our debt of sin. He totally endured all our punishment for our sins. So if you want to see the highest and most supreme love possible you mustn’t look to anyone in this world – you must look to the cross. For God so loved the world that He gave His One and Only Son….. He gave Him, what did He give Him to? He gave His Son over to the cross and He gave Him so that He could have you. No greater love has anyone than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. Jesus laid down His life for you. Supreme, divine love. Glorious love.
His glorious justice was expressed at the cross. God is holy and man is sinful. And because God is holy He must punish sin; His holiness will come violently up against sin and destroy it. But what God did was provide a substitute for man so man would not be destroyed. God offered His own holy Son to come and to take all of man’s sins upon Himself. And in doing so God punished His own Son instead of man. In doing so God satisfied His just wrath on sin. In doing so man can be cleared of the charges against him - if he would but turn and trust in Jesus Christ.
Then we see that God’s glorious wisdom is expressed in the cross. Man’s sins separate him from God who is holy. How could sinful man ever possibly have any hope of being with the All-Holy God? Only if his sins are removed from him. And it is at the cross that that was accomplished.
Second Corinthians 5:21 says, “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” In the death of Jesus Christ is the glorious genius of God. He alone had the wisdom to offer the solution where His justice could be satisfied and we could be spared. “It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God.” (1 Cor. 1:30).
Secondly His death causes growth. Jesus uses a seed illustration to describe His death. The seed’s purpose is to grow fruit. Its purpose is not to simply remain a seed. But before a seed can grow fruit it must die. The seed is planted into the ground where it dies and then the life within it is released and grows and produces fruit.
Jesus was teaching the important spiritual principle that that without death there is no life. The kind of life that Jesus came to give required a death to come first. He came to give life but that life could not be given to anyone until He died first. Without His death first, there is no fruit of life in anyone else’s life. Like the seed planted in the ground to die, Jesus had to plant His dead body in the grave so that the life that is His could be given to others. Because of His death, His life is growing all over the world.
Death of Self (v25)
Now next we see the Death of Self. Look with me at verse 25, “The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.”
What Jesus is saying is that if you want eternal life something about you has to die. This verse follows immediately after Jesus’ illustration of the seed. That principle applies not only to Jesus’ mission, but, it also applies to the man who comes to Christ. Without death there is no life. Unless you die to yourself you will not come alive in Christ. Listen to these verses:
Romans 6: “Now if we died with Christ, we believe we will also live with Him….In the same way count yourselves dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.”
Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
Colossians 3:3-4, “For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”
What Jesus is saying is that there’s no room for you when you come to Him. You can’t come to Christ and be self-centered. You can’t be all about you. You can’t make you the most important person in the universe. If you do, you won’t get what He’s offering. The you that says, “I will live how I want” must die. The you that says, “I will pursue my ambitions and my goals” must die. The you that says, “I’m good enough” must die. The you that exalts you must die so that Christ may be exalted in you.
The key to that is you have to hate your life so much that you don’t want it anymore. You have to see yourself for who God says you are in your sin and be ashamed of who you are apart from Jesus. You have to realize that without Christ you are hopeless. Paul said everything he was without Christ was garbage. He was a wretch.
It’s only when a man sees his life like that is when he can look to Christ for new life. Only then would he be ready to cast off his old self to take up new life in Christ. You have to come to Christ hating your life. It’s really only at that point that you’re willing to give your life up. And its only then that Christ will give you His eternal life.
Christ’s death was totally unselfish. He gave up His glory to come in humility. He gave up His wealth to become poor. He gave up His life. He died in a most disgraceful way …on a cross. Our death to ourselves is a very unselfish act. We give up our self to someone else entirely. We entirely trust ourselves to someone else in order to have what He is offering.
Conclusion:
Dedicated Servant (v26)
You know what salvation produces? A Dedicated Servant. Verse 26 says, “Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.”
Jesus is talking about Dedicated Servant. He makes two points about dedicated servant. First, he is humble. “Whoever serves Me must follow Me; and where I am my servant will also be…” Being a servant to Christ means you serve someone other than you. You serve Him. Where He goes you go. Where He is you are.
Do you know what that means? That means that self dies. It happens when we came to Christ for salvation, but, the Christian life is one where we continually choose to die to self and deny all it wants so that we can take up our new life and put on our new self in Christ, “which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.”
I read about some Christians who had visited a remote mission station to see how the ministry was going. As they watched the dedicated missionary team at work, they were impressed with their ministry, but admitted that they missed “civilization.” One of the visitors said to the missionary team, “You certainly have buried yourself out here!” And one of the missionaries said, “We haven’t buried ourselves, we were planted!”
The second point about the Dedicated Servant is that he will be honored. “My Father will honor the one who serves me.” Why does He throw that in there? Because Jesus knows the cost of following Him.
The world crucified Him!
What will they do with those who follow Him?!
Jesus is giving a promise to those who faithfully follow Him that no matter how much the world dishonors and disgraces them for following Him, His Father will honor them. Jesus said in Mark 8, “If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this sinful and adulterous generation , the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in His Father’s glory with the holy angels.” The promise is that the world will shame you for following Christ. The promise is that God will honor you if you faithfully and unashamedly follow Him. Expect shame. But also expect honor in due time.
Coming to Christ requires: Diligently Seek Him, Death of the Son, Death of Self, and Dedicated Service.
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