The Price for Life

Psalm 89:1-2, 14-18                  Hebrews 2:14-18                      John 12:20-36

The Price for Life

A lot of people, at least in the West, have a tendency to take life for granted. We face few significant threats, and, for the most part, that which we consider catastrophic could be more accurately labelled an inconvenience. Only a small number of us genuinely grasp and appreciate the value of life. 

Unfortunately, this tendency is also present in our expression of Christianity. How many of us truly appreciate the full reality of what it cost to grant us this gracious and free salvation that is ours in Jesus?

In our Gospel passage for today, Jesus spoke straightforwardly about the cost of redemption. And yet, even as he contemplated the horror that lay before him, he was more concerned that those around him understood enough to be able to respond appropriately. The central theme of his teaching here is the main purpose of his incarnation, namely that he took upon himself the form of a human so that he might give us life through his death.

In verses 20-26, Jesus laid down the principle of substitutionary atonement…one dying instead of or on behalf of others. Using a kernel of wheat as an illustration, he parabolically revealed what he was about to do. 

Jesus told this parable because “some Greeks” requested an audience with him. Now, the word John used here indicates that these people were most likely proselytes of pure Greek extraction. Strangely, they approached Philip first possibly because his name was Greek. But, if you recall, when Jesus sent the disciples out, he instructed them not to go to the Gentiles or the Samaritans, but only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel (Matthew 10:5), which is probably why Philip first went to Andrew before approaching Jesus. He needed some “backup”. 

This request from the Greeks seemed to have been a signal for Jesus that the climax of his ministry or, as he called it, “his hour” had finally come. Why? Well, I think it is because his atoning death would benefit all nations and the fact that the group seeking an audience with him were Greeks and not Jews of Judea, Galilee, or the Diaspora heralded the beginning of the new era in which both Jew and Gentile alike would worship God side by side in spirit and in truth. In a certain sense, this confirmed what the Pharisees had said in verse 19: “Look, the whole world has gone after him!”

Now as we have already observed, these Greeks were hesitant if not uncertain in their approach. They first came to Philip and not directly to Jesus. This may indicate a respect for the Jewish social custom of not associating with non-Jews. If you recall, the Roman Centurion also showed this kind of thoughtfulness when he considered himself unworthy of having Jesus enter his “unclean” house to heal his servant. (Matthew 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10) 

However, the synoptic Gospels insert a second cleansing of the temple at this point. This is significant because the selling of the sacrificial animals and the exchanging of currency took place in the Court of the Gentiles. And so, these Greek “God-fearers” would have been prevented from entering the space for prayer. So, it may be that they sought an audience with Jesus because he was the one who had cleared the designated area so that they might enter freely to worship. 

Why John did not include the second cleansing of the Temple is anyone’s guess but if we insert that dramatic confrontation at this point it explains this sudden request for a meeting between Gentiles and this whip-wielding Jewish Messiah. His action opened the way for them to worship God, and his words recalled the prophetic utterance of Isaiah (56:7): “My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.”

Nevertheless, as I said earlier, their approach signified to Jesus that his hour to be glorified had come, and so he responded to this request with a parable concerning the immense cost of securing an entrance, not just into the Court of the Gentiles or even into the Temple itself, but into the Kingdom of God. Portraying himself as a kernel of wheat, Jesus said that as long as he remained alive in his present incarnate state, the new creation could not be launched. Just as one single seed remains a single seed until it is buried in the ground, sacrificing itself in a sense so that it might be transformed into a plant that would produce many more seeds, so Jesus indicated that his death was purposefully designed to bring to life “seeds” (re)born from him.

This sacrificial act of Jesus is a principle we are urged to imitate. As John said in his first Epistle, “By this we know love, because he laid down his life for us. AND we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.” (1 John 3:16) Imagine if all who call themselves followers of Jesus were to live according to this principle? Laying down our lives for others just as Jesus laid down his life for us.

In the book of Revelation, John described the first followers of Jesus as those who conquered the accuser of the brethren “by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.” (Revelation 12:11 ESV) Like their Lord, they laid down their lives so that others might share in the salvation given to them through Jesus’ substitutionary death on the cross. 

But does this sacrificial living, encouraged and demonstrated in the New Testament, accurately describe our behaviour in the modern Church? Does it cost us something…anything at all…to follow Jesus or are we more like the world, doing a good job of looking out for number one? Me, myself, and I.

Do we perhaps love our life on this earth a little too much? Jesus lived to give…do we live to get? If I were to stand next to Jesus right now, how would I measure up? Am I like him in any way at all? 

But even though self-sacrifice seems to be a high price to pay, it also offers a great blessing. While we may be called upon to serve Jesus by following in his footsteps so that we might quite literally be wherever he may be, we are told here that if we do this we will be honoured and valued by the Father. Perhaps this is what Paul meant when he said in Ephesians 2:4-6, “God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ…and raised us up together, and made us sit in the heavenly place in Christ Jesus.” Being raised together with him means being honoured together with him too. 

A price was paid so that we might live in and through Jesus, and we too ought to be prepared to pay an equal price so that others might share in this sacrificial yet free gift of life. But surely the benefits far outweigh the cost.

True, it wasn’t easy for Jesus to face the cross. As he realised that his hour had arrived, the full force of the horrors that awaited him hit him like a freight train. The betrayal, desertion, and denial of his closest friends…an unjust trial…the mocking, the brutal beatings, the scourging, and then finally, the excruciating pain of death by crucifixion while he absorbed and annulled the weight of the curse for sin…it is possible that all these things came flooding into his mind at this moment, and he was deeply disturbed. 

The next few sentences seem to be a short form of verbal self-deliberation followed by a public declaration. “I am overwhelmed by terrifying thoughts,” Jesus seemed to say to himself. “How then should I respond to this debilitating fear? Should I pray for the Father to deliver me from this? No, I can’t do that because I came into this world to die for it…it would negate the entire reason for the incarnation. I would be like a kernel of wheat preserved but not sown. So no, I will rather say, Father, glorify your name!” 

Jesus’ deliberation here would be repeated once more in the Garden of Gethsemane. “Father, if it is your will, remove this cup from me; nevertheless, not my will, but yours be done.” (Luke 22:42) In both instances, there was a desperate cry of anguish before a bold declaration of obedient surrender.

Here the purpose of his life overrides his terror-filled agony. Jesus demonstrated the principle he had just revealed. He did not love his life above all else…rather he willingly gave it up as a ransom for many. And it is this self-sacrificial act that brings glory to God.

The voice from heaven, mistaken by some in the crowd for thunder or the voice of an angel, assured him that his sacrifice would achieve the divine design…that his death would fulfil the promise made by God to overturn the effects of the Fall (Genesis 3:15). However, Jesus indicated that this voice was in reality, not for his benefit, but for theirs. 

In many ways, even today his struggles here may help us when we are deliberating difficult decisions in our lives. As Jesus had previously warned his disciples if he was persecuted, they too would be persecuted, and we are told by Early Church historians and traditions that all but one of the disciples were martyred for their faith. The suffering of Jesus addresses our own.

In his first Epistle, Peter tells us that it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. And then he compared our suffering with the suffering of Jesus who also suffered as a just man so that he might bring us to God. (1 Peter 3:17-18) 

Now, in one sense, of course, we can never compare our suffering to the suffering of Jesus. Nevertheless, one of the goals of suffering does create a favourable comparison. Jesus’ goal was the glory of God. Suffering because of our faith in Jesus also glorifies God as it is a declaration to both the visible and the invisible world that our love for God is greater than our love for what this world has to offer. 

It has often been said that it was the bravely borne suffering of the First Century Christians that brought many spectators in the Colosseum to faith in Jesus. In his Apologeticus, Tertullian wrote: “We multiply when you reap us. The blood of Christians is seed,” perhaps an allusion to our Lord’s use of a wheat kernel as an illustration.

Nevertheless, it is a good question for us to ponder. What is primary in my life? Is God glorified in everything I say and do?

Now, because this voice from heaven sanctioned not only the teaching ministry of Jesus but also his ministry of reconciliation through his vicarious substitutionary death, his disciples especially needed to understand that the sudden and unexpected transition from the enthronement anticipated the day before in the triumphal entry, to his actual enthronement on an instrument of execution a few days later, was not a defeat or a mistake, but a fulfilment of the divine purpose and plan. “Now,” Jesus said, “is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 

What would soon take place on the cross was nothing less than the restoration of the world to its rightful state. The ruler of this world, Satan the usurper, would be overthrown, publicly disgraced, and disarmed at the cross. (Colossians 2:15) The death of Jesus on the cross signifies not a judgement, but the judgement of all time as the consequence is a total takeover. 

As John wrote in his first epistle, “For this purpose, the Son of God was manifested that he might destroy the works of the devil.” (1 John 3:8) The author to the Hebrews took it a step further when he said in 2:14-15, “Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, he himself likewise shared in the same, that through death he might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.”

As far as I can see, according to the testimony of Scripture, Satan was defeated and cast out at the cross. Now, this victory holds both a blessing and a curse. Because the cross itself was at once the decisive moment in which judgment was rendered on sin and on Satan, as well as the deciding moment of judgment in which subjects would be drawn to Jesus, it follows that the one who absorbed the curse thus voiding it of its power, becomes the judge of all. Again, as the author of Hebrews says in 1:3, “…when he had by himself purged our sins, (he) sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.” Not only was Satan defeated at the cross…not only did the expunging of our sins take place at the very same time…but also, because of the cross, Jesus was enthroned as King and as Judge over all. 

And so, it is because of this overwhelming victory that all humanity indeed is drawn to stand before Jesus the righteous Judge. As he said in Matthew 25:31-46, it is as he sits on his glorious throne that all nations will be gathered to him for judgement. It is the cross that separates the sheep from the goats. 

That Jesus meant that this would take place through his death on the cross is confirmed not only by John’s comment in verse 33, but also by the misguided statements of the Jews. They could not understand the concept of a dying deliverer because they had been led to believe that the Messiah would be a warrior king who would remain forever. Of course, this is true as ultimately Jesus does reign for all eternity, but his ascension to the throne was to take place through the cross.

Ignoring their questions, Jesus responded rather with a promise that contained both a warning as well as a reward. “You are going to have the light just a little while longer,” he said. “Walk while you have the light before darkness overtakes you.” 

Now, the image of a light that is different to that which radiates from the sun and other planets originates in Genesis 1:3 where light is created before the creation of the cosmic luminaries. This light appears to be something other than what we would consider “natural” because in Exodus 10:21 and following, during the 9th plague in Egypt, God provided light to the Israelites while the rest of the land languished in a supernaturally thick darkness. Again, in Exodus 14:19-20 the presence of God depicted in a Pillar of Cloud by day and Fire by night came between the fleeing Israelites and the pursuing Egyptians and throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side. 

Then the prophets also spoke of a coming deliverer in terms of a light that would ultimately overcome the darkness and thereby bring salvation to the Gentiles. John applied this directly to Jesus in the opening chapters of both his Gospel as well as his first Epistle. 

So, we can safely say that ‘walking in the light’ is not a New Testament concept. Often the Old Testament prophets exhorted and encouraged God’s people to walk in the light of the Lord so that they might not be engulfed by the darkness which would come because of the Lord’s withdrawal of his presence due to their sins. And this is precisely the same picture Jesus sketched here for his listeners. The light stood before them and (if I may borrow Exodus terminology here) if they refused to follow him out of bondage, they would remain enslaved in the darkness. That was the warning.

But the reward was for those who put their trust in the light and followed him. They would become “children of light”. Just as the moon reflects the light of the sun, those who walk in the light of Jesus reflect him. Those who follow him become like him. In Matthew 5:14, the one who referred to himself as the light of the world applied the very same imagery to his disciples. “You,” he said, “are the light of the world.” In other words, people ought to see Jesus reflected in and through us. 

But this wonderful reward is a result of selflessly giving up what we will for what God wills, just as Jesus gave up his will so that he might fulfil the Father’s will. Jesus purchased this reward for us at the cost of his precious life…and we are called upon to follow in his footsteps. So, we ought to love God more than our lives. 

Jesus’ purpose was to lay down his life for us…our purpose is similar and yet different. While we cannot provide atonement for sin, we can “sacrifice” our lives or give up what we want for our lives, so that others might embrace the atonement we have received through Jesus. This was not easy for Jesus, and it will not be easy for us either. 

He openly asked God to save him from that very thing that would secure our salvation if it were possible. But even as he faced horrors we cannot begin to imagine with our finite minds, he obediently accepted and surrendered to the task and, as Hebrews 12:2 tells us, “for the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame”. And because of his obedience even unto death on the cross, he subsequently was elevated to the right hand of the throne of God, drawing his children up with him.

As those who both walk in the light and are children of the light, we too have a responsibility to take his light into the darkness of this world, regardless of what it might cost us. We are not only called to repent and believe in Jesus…we are not only called to trust and love him…we are also called to follow him, to be like him, to reflect him, and to be conformed to his image.

And so, dearest beloved brethren, let us put our absolute trust in the light so that we might be children of light.

Shall we pray?

© Johannes W H van der Bijl 2024