New Thoughts (01/20/11-01/25/11)
As I have been proceeding through the record of this final week of Jesus’ ministry, I have found myself rearranging my outline quite a bit, as certain events seem more likely to have happened on different days then I had originally thought. Of course, even with these refinements it remains only a best guess. I cannot be certain, I don’t suppose. But, as I look at the combined accounts, it seems clear that the immediate withering of the fig tree that Matthew notes is only complete the next day, as Mark recounts it. There is also the fact that Mark tells us Jesus arrived at the temple so late on that first day, after the triumphal entrance, that He opted to just scan the place and then head back out to Bethany. So, the cleansing of the temple would have to have happened a day later, and it seems clearly to follow after the business with the fig tree’s demise.
As to bringing John’s account in at this point, I maintain that Jesus’ activity in clearing all the garbage out of the court of the Gentiles provides us with a clear pretext for these Greeks now coming to seek Him out. I have explored that point somewhat in my preparatory work. But, as is often said, the Scriptures being an inspired text, there is no detail of the text that is superfluous. It is all there that we might better understand. Is it possible that God brought this business with the Greeks to mind as he made his contribution to the work so that we might find this point of contact, this connection, between his account and the others? Could that not be at least a part of the reason for its inclusion? Granted, there is far, far more for us to learn from the event then simply that the Greeks had found cause to appreciate Jesus. But, it’s a starting point.
Let me explore this matter just a little farther. It is pretty well established that the Jew of that time had a particularly low opinion of everything non-Jewish. To be a Gentile was to be a barbarian, a dog, too low in the order of things to be given another thought. The more religious the Jew, along traditional lines, the more likely this mindset. The Romans were perhaps the most despised at the time simply because they were the dominant force, and forcefully so. But, the Greeks held a nearly equal place in local thought, for their ways were corrupting the world! Even the Romans took upon themselves Greek custom. You’ll note, for instance, that Latin did not become the common language of the empire, but Greek. You’ll note that for every Roman god there is a more well known and fully equivalent Greek counterpart. Nor does one hear a great deal about Roman philosophy. No, it’s the Greeks who achieved the greater notoriety for all that Rome had the greater empire. It’s almost as if the Roman Empire was more or less perceived as the second Greek Empire, at least for those who were neither Roman nor Greek.
To the devout Jew, though, this influx of Greek custom, even into the Jewish community, was a blasphemous occurrence, to be fought off with every ounce of their strength. Wasn’t this what the Maccabees had freed us from? How could a good Jew be joining the Greek gymnasium? Did he not know what goes on in those places? It’s a betrayal! It’s a betrayal of the country and worse, it’s a betrayal of God.
I belabor this point just a bit because this opinion, this general attitude of the population was hardly a thing unnoticed by the Gentiles in their midst. There was not a Roman governor or king over that region who did not recognize the antagonism of his subjects. Neither was there a God-fearer come to temple who did not know full well where he stood in the opinion of the Jews. That includes our Greek friends from this passage. Face it. The low regard the Jews had for the court of the Gentiles was but the mildest display of their general contempt. You can come worship our God, if you must, but don’t come too close. Don’t expect too much, certainly not from us. Probably not from Him. Dog!
So, because Law required it of them, they maintained this court of the Gentiles, but really, they didn’t see it as part of the temple. This is evident in the corrective actions Jesus had to take. They saw it as little more than a back alley, a short-cut on their way about business. They thought nothing of it! It was just another market-place. Given the attitude of the priests themselves towards this space, it’s hardly shocking that the people they led developed similar attitudes. If you turn the church into a market, a salesroom, don’t expect a particularly reverent attitude towards it. You have already advertised what it is in your sight. Why should you expect the world to hold it in higher regard?
These Greeks, though, are presumably in that class of God-fearers. At least, this is my assumption. This is the group that would be most concerned, or most impressed by what had happened there in that courtyard. Were they proselytes, they would have been circumcised, and they could, I believe, have gone on into the other courts, like any Jewish man. As such, the conditions in this outermost court wouldn’t matter to them too much. But, the God-fearers, these most uncertain of believers in Israel’s God: For them, this was as close as they could come. This was it. And, let’s face it: Attempting to worship in such an environment was bound to be a challenge. So, when Jesus comes and displays a wholly uncharacteristic (for a Jew) concern for this Gentile space, they are deeply moved. Of course they want to come see this Man. If nothing else, I should think they would wish to thank Him for what He has done on their behalf. But, it goes far and away beyond that.
Clearly, as they have been dealing with this outer court noise, they are being called by God. Why else would anybody put up with such aggravation to worship something? Really, unless they had already perceived a very clear benefit from worshiping this foreign God, it would be particularly difficult to explain why they bother to come to a crowded city where they are most unwelcome, to stand all day in a court yard full of cattle and barkers and what not for this whole Holy Week. Who would come, except God was on the move in their hearts? This act of Jesus, then, comes as yet another spark to keep that initial flame alive. It was an evidence that whatever His people thought, God Himself wanted them here. It was likely the first welcoming act they had ever experienced. Here, then, is a real representative of this real God. We must hear more of Him.
So, they come, and they scan the faces of those who are with Him. Their respect is too great to allow a direct approach. Really, the nature of the Greek philosopher and the nature of the Jewish rabbi are sufficiently similar that their sense of Jesus’ position would naturally prevent such an affront. He is clearly a teacher of some great value. Just look at the crowds that follow Him around! If they would benefit from such a renowned teacher, they must have proper introduction. So, yes: They are considering these disciples that follow Him. It is quickly clear who are locals attracted by His presence and who are His real entourage. In fact, they may well have identified this inner circle of His students as they watched Him go back to Bethany yesterday, or watched His return today. Having identified this inner group, they are now looking for the most likely one to approach for introduction. Out of this surprisingly welcoming group, who seems most welcoming?
Now, it is typically commented that Philip, being from Bethsaida, would have less of that typical Jewish animosity towards the Gentiles. This was a characteristic of Galilee, wasn’t it? Galilee of the Gentiles! The backwoods of Israel, where they didn’t know enough to remain pure and aloof. These were the ones who were in common and constant contact with the Gentiles, the Greeks. And, one could spot a Galilean pretty easily, so soon as he opened his mouth to speak. The accent marked them out here in cultured, urbane Jerusalem. But, this really doesn’t explain the choice, at least not completely. After all, Peter and Andrew are from the very same town. James and John, if they are not from there are from someplace very close by. If it were a matter of accent, any one of them would do. So, why Philip?
To some degree, it may have been process of elimination. Peter, James and John might well be recognizably identified as being the inner circle of the inner circle. There’s also the matter of their character as we see it displayed. James and John, the ‘sons of thunder’: Sound pretty approachable, don’t they? And, Peter: both his trade and his general boisterousness give us some indication of what we might expect him to seem like. He’s doubtless a man whose strength is clear, and whose energy, for those not used to him, might be a bit off-putting. Judas? Probably contemplating how to do his dastardly deed, and not particularly happy looking. Matthew? Hard to say, but given the way his Gospel remains aimed at a more Jewish world-view, we might suppose he had a greater degree of that typical Jewish animosity towards the Greek. Simon the zealot? Oh, yea! There’s an approachable sort. They’re all about violence! Let’s talk to him.
But, Philip, what little we see of him, seems a particularly outgoing sort. Think about the introduction John gives us to this man. He is the first one explicitly called by Jesus, and he is the first one to evangelize, going immediately to tell Nathanael that the Messiah is here (Jn 1:43-45). It’s not a great deal to go on, but it does give us a glimpse into his nature. He’s outgoing. He’s concerned to see news of Messiah spread. Now, it’s pretty obvious that Nathanael was somebody Philip knew, not just the first random stranger he happened across. But, still, there’s that outward focus. Jesus seems to build on that focus at the feeding of the 5000. In a bit of instruction aimed particularly at Philip, Jesus looks to him for an answer as to where they might buy sufficient bread for this crowd.
Without reading too much into it, I do find it interesting that it is Philip who has to field this question. Again, it’s a hint to his nature. Why does Jesus ask him in particular? It could be that this is another bit of evidence for an outgoing focus in the man. Of the twelve, he’d be the one who was thinking about such things, concerned about such things. You know, there’s a reason Jesus picked this guy. He was particularly suited for some particular acts, and this act on this third day in Jerusalem is one of them. I think these brief snapshots we get of Philip, considered in light of the question as to why the Greeks picked him out as the one to approach, give us the sense that Philip was approachable. He was outgoing. He was one of those guys that you could just observe and know that here was somebody willing to help. If anybody would prove willing to make introductions on their behalf, this guy was the best candidate in view.
As to Philip’s decision to check with Andrew first, the explanation seems fairly simple. First, they are friends of long-standing, neighbors or near enough to. Second, they are well used to working with each other. Again, we get a sense of that from the feeding of the 5000. While Philip is trying to figure out where they would buy so much bread and, never mind that, how would we pay for it, Andrew pipes in with the observation that there’s a kid around with a little bit of food anyway. Admittedly, this observation was hardly something offered as a solution to the conundrum, but it was help nonetheless. Andrew, in stepping in here, shows himself as helpful to Philip, a friend indeed. We might also suppose that, while likely younger than Peter, Andrew is yet a bit older than Philip, leading to a rather natural tendency to see him as next up the chain of command, if you will. I could also note that Andrew shows signs of generally being a kindred spirit. Again, look to John’s account of the start of this whole ministry. Andrew overheard John talking to Jesus, and went off to tell his brother Simon that Messiah was here (Jn 1:40-41). There’s that same evangelistic urge in Andrew as we see in Philip. One could easily suspect that these two, upon being approached by the Greeks, saw an opportunity for their favorite activity: Spreading the news.
Before I set aside the notice of Philip here, I was prompted to think about how this action at the temple prepared Philip for that later action with which he is most commonly associated, when he led the Ethiopian eunuch into faith. Here, he is being schooled in the welcome that these non-Jewish believers should receive from the follower of Christ. For ourselves, we could replace the ‘Jewish’ part of that sentence with whatever people group we might be less inclined to think could be part of the kingdom. After all, the clear message is that there is no such people group. Every tribe and every nation will be found amongst the people of God, as it was intended from the outset. But, for Philip, this is training. It’s training that is particularly well-suited to his nature and inclination. He’s an outgoing man with a heart for evangelism to begin with. Extending this mindset to encompass those outside the traditions of Israel is but a step he needed to take. Having grown up in Galilee made him, perhaps, more amenable to the idea than one from these southern provinces might have been.
The lesson is really very simple. It seeks to answer the question of what is to be done if somebody wishes to meet Jesus. And the answer is pretty obvious from our perspective: Take them to Him. None comes to Him except the Father calls them, so their interest in meeting Him ought best be interpreted as evidence of that very call. That being the case, it is an honor for us to be allowed a part in bringing them to where He is. On this first occasion, it simply meant that Philip needed to walk over to Jesus and allow these men to follow. In that later event from Acts 8:27 and onward, it required something more. It required, first, going out of his way to be the mouthpiece for Jesus. It required, second, that he be able to explain the Scriptures. Now, this is admittedly something which requires the Holy Spirit’s presence in one’s life, if it is to be done well and to effect. But, it also requires that one know them to begin with, having spent time in mediation upon the meaning and the significance.
This is what adds the fire of personal conviction to the expounding on the Word. It’s meaning has become so real to you personally because of time spent in consideration of the things God has revealed in His Word, what it says of Who He Is, what it records as to all that He has done. Most marvelously, we learn through these efforts that the history revealed in its pages is connected, and connected by His purpose. In other words, we learn that all that has transpired down through the ages transpired in accord with a plan and a purpose, unfolding exactly as this Most High God has intended. Thus, it is marvelous in our eyes. Thus, there is that sense of marvel, of joy in knowing this same Most High God has seen to your salvation, which is imparted into the explanation given to this one who would meet our Lord and Savior at His calling.
Philip had been prepared by God for just such an occasion, and he served in fine fashion. The fact that this man would have been precluded from consideration as a proselyte did not cause Philip to suppose he was beyond redemption. He knew better. No prejudice of mind was holding him back from doing as God had proposed to do. When this man whose situation as a eunuch would have kept him forever at a distance from temple worship, asked what prevented him from being baptized, Philip gave the most wonderful of answers. The short form of that answer was, “Nothing.” The longer form was not much more difficult to take. “If you believe in earnest, you may” (Ac 8:37). Think about that. There is nothing about you, Mr. Eunuch, that presents a physical obstacle to your acceptance in God’s sight. This no doubt runs counter to what you have been told, but it is Truth. God looks upon the heart and indeed refashions the heart in those He has chosen to save. Oh! The rejoicing that man must have felt! How wonderful, this God who accepted so freely those whom society rejected as incomplete.
So, again I need to ask, who is it that I look upon as no viable candidate for salvation? Who do I place beyond the possibility? I suppose if I had such a list in conscious thought, I should have to place myself right at the top of it. Any honest assessment must arrive at that conclusion. I have no more reason to expect this state of grace than any man. I had done sufficient to try and distance myself from any concept of god or morality. I had done what I could to achieve autonomy, to be a law unto myself and to do precisely as I pleased. But, God. At the same time, though, I know that there are prejudices of a sort that remain in me, flying below the radar, as it were, until the occasion arises. I have known those who, upon first meeting, I would wonder what they had to do with the house of the Lord. Why were they here, except maybe in hopes of a handout. These are scary people. These are people you’d not want to meet on a lonely sidewalk. And yet, I have been with these people and discovered that, you know what? God loves them and is truly working in them. Sure, they’ve got issues. So do I. Sure, they’re not the standard issue for pew fillers, but then, neither am I, really. I just learned early how to dress the part. In short, what keeps us from seeing the potential brother in anybody (and I mean anybody) is an over-inflated sense of our own worth.
It had crossed my mind early on into considering this passage to wonder why Philip chose Andrew in particular as the one to get advice from in this circumstance. I think that has become reasonably clear in further pursuing the preparations for this study. These are two men who have known each other for some time. Both were from Bethsaida, both had been under the ministry of John the Baptist before coming to be disciples of the Christ. And, Andrew was Peter’s brother, likely his younger brother. This would make him a bit more approachable, perhaps, than Peter (for Peter seems to have taken on a certain aspect of being leader and spokesman for the group by this time). Being Peter’s brother, Andrew might have a sense of how his brother would perceive the situation. Then, there is one additional factor that I think might have played into Philip’s thinking: Andrew had the same passion for evangelizing.
The story of Andrew’s call has certain similarities to Philip’s. Philip, upon being called by Jesus, went immediately to inform Nathanael that Messiah was here. Andrew, although not directly called by Jesus, went immediately to tell his brother that Messiah was here. There would be a natural affinity, then, between these two, based on a commonality of interest. There would also, I suspect, be a bond of sorts for having shared that moment of testing about the way to get bread for the 5000.
With that, it is time to turn my focus on the response Jesus has to their presenting the desire of these Greeks to Him. As is so often the case, it would be very easy to look at His answer as being detached from events, as though He were in His own mental world of thought, so divorced from the day to day as to be all but untouched by it. Of course this is not the case. It is often difficult to come to grips with how His response fits the situation, but then, He’s a teacher. He intends to require thought from His students as well as faith. So, let’s take a look at these words of His.
It begins with something of an aside. “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” That’s great, Jesus. So, should we bring them over or not? Can I just say this, and I trust my Jesus won’t take offense: You know, it seems like you just never get a straight, simple answer from Him! If there is one thing I’ve found fairly consistent in this study of the Gospels, that’s it. The answer is there, but it’s never just there. It requires effort. It’s going to take you by surprise. If you’re not determined to find the answer in His answer, seems to me, you’re extremely likely to miss it. Had these two been listening only for either a ‘yes, bring them,’ or a ‘no, get them away from Me,’ they’d be standing there still, waiting for a decision. But, there was an answer, and far more than just an answer.
This is a lesson to take to heart. It is one of the biggest reasons we fall into thinking that God isn’t listening, or isn’t answering our prayers. It’s because we have laid out the selection of answers we are willing to accept and insisted that He choose from our menu. Instead, the same great Teacher who required thought from His students then continues to require thought from His disciples today. As a believer, the first thing we must believe is that God answers. We must trust Him to answer. With that in mind, we must consider whatever it is He does by way of reply to understand the answer contained therein. It might have been a trifle easier for the disciples with Him at the time, for they had mostly to just deal with the words of His reply and understand how it applied to the question posed. We don’t always have words to parse, but perhaps actions, perhaps those coincidental occurrences in life which are no coincidence. We have, most of all, to be aware and to be confident that God does indeed answer prayers, even if it is so very rarely along the lines we expect. We should, with God, expect the unexpected. We should expect that His answer will display a wisdom beyond our own, for His wisdom is far and away beyond our own.
So, looking at this answer, this aside Jesus speaks, be very certain that it contains the answer to what Philip and Andrew are asking. Honestly, I think it’s entirely possible that the answer, in this case, is given quite explicitly, although with something of a double meaning. That answer, if I am right, comes in verse 26: “If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me.” That really is the message we bear, isn’t it? Of course, there’s more to it for us, as we become His followers, but for those standing at the door, this is the opening of the door. But, let’s stay in that initial response a bit longer.
The Son of Man is now to be glorified. Zhodiates makes the point that from John’s perspective, that word ‘glorified’ has a very unique meaning as it is applied to Jesus. We’re not just talking about a promotion of some sort for Him. Neither are we talking about arraying Him in rich robes of splendor. Indeed, it’s not even that particularly pure radiance that John experienced coming from Him at His transfiguration. There does remain to that word the sense of causing the worth of a person to be manifest and manifestly acknowledged. That is assuredly part of the story. God is about to make the infinite worth of the Son of Man manifest, and to cause it to be manifestly acknowledged. This is so much bigger than Jerusalem! So much bigger than Israel! And, that reality is about to be made clear.
There is also this, though: In Jesus, this act of glorification is also about a revelation, a manifest revelation of God’s goodness. In other words, through the acts about to become the close of Jesus’ ministry, and more so through those acts of God which would follow, His goodness and mercy were being made abundantly clear. The incredible goodness of God Who would thus spend the life of His own Son, His Only Son, to achieve the redemption of a mankind manifestly undeserving of that gift is such that it continues to stun and bewilder even into our own day. This one act, this willing suffering unto death by the Servant of the Most High, because of the Father’s response in resurrecting that same Servant, set the mark upon Jesus, made plain to one and all that here, indeed, was the Son of God. Here indeed was one worthy of all praise and all honor.
I tell you it was made plain to one and all, and remains so. However vocal the denials, however plaintive and vitriolic the arguments of those who insist on unbelief, the fact is that this revelation is clear and understood. No man has an excuse. No man can honestly argue that God has not given sufficient evidence of His being for us to believe. There will be no pleading ignorance before His court.
I have said that this business of glorifying the Son was not just a matter of promotion. Yet, there is that aspect of promotion in John’s use of the term as applied to Jesus. For John, the idea of Jesus glorified always arrives at the moment of His Ascension. Indeed, He has been promoted to His throne. Now, there is truth to the fact that He has always sat upon that throne, He has always reigned and always shall. Yet, there is a special something to that moment of His Ascension. Prior to that point, He sat on an unsettled throne, as it were; not unsettled in His mind, but unsettled, perhaps, in ours. But, in that moment, having arrived at the point where He could say, “It is finished”, the matter of His throne was settled once for all time. No challenge could come. Every enemy was vanquished. Dominion, though always assured, was now doubly assured. God’s children could rest in the peace of knowing with utmost certainty that the Lamb of God is on the throne. Now, that’s glory! That’s manifestation of God’s goodness! That’s cause to acknowledge and celebrate the infinite worth of our Savior!
Jesus next turns to both a further foreshadowing of the events that lay ahead for this final week, and also a critical lesson for His followers. That lesson remains absolutely critical to His followers today. Indeed, it is so important a lesson that Jesus seems to have delivered it on more than this one occasion. It is, in this case, a repeated lesson, but with the added urgency of the moment. In making His point, He turns once more to those agrarian themes so familiar to His listeners. He speaks of the grain of wheat which, if it does not fall into the earth and die, will never be more than itself. If it dies, He notes, it bears much fruit.
The sense of this is quite clear. Jesus is not intending to deliver a science lecture here, although His description of the process, rightly understood, is quite reasonable and accurate. This becomes clearer in the point that He draws from His illustration. The death of the seed, though real in its way, is not truly and fully death in that case where the seed has been planted. The real life of the seed continues in the plant that grows. Arguably, that seed which did not die in the ground is far more dead. It shall never reproduce. It shall make, perhaps, one final contribution to the chain of life as part of some bread, but that’s it.
As I think upon that, I am put back in mind of the association between bread and life. Jesus Himself works with that association, saying, “I AM the bread of life” (Jn 6:48). This, of course, ties back to the manna in the wilderness by which God preserved His people in their wanderings. We also find this same connection, both to bread and to manna in the model prayer that Jesus provides for His disciples, which includes the request (or the confidence expressed) to ‘give us this day our daily bread’ (Mt 6:11, Lk 11:3). Provision for life. That’s a great portion of what we are called to believe upon God for, He being our Provider. It seems not unreasonable to me to have all this in mind while we consider that grain of wheat of which Jesus now speaks. It is the germ of life, being the primary, necessary component in that bread which sustains life. Life, we understand, is in the blood. That is fundamental to the sacrificial system that culminated in the events Jesus foreshadows here. But, life is sustained in the bread. Both are needful. Both are images given us for the underlying message of Life.
If, then, that which is fundamental to the bread is wholly consumed in the making of this bread, then there remains no bread for tomorrow, and the chain of life is broken. This is a more horrible thing than simply that the grain ‘remains by itself alone’. Not only has the grain failed of life, but life itself has failed. But, that same grain, planted and put to its purpose, produces more grains like unto itself. It is fruitful, and there is abundance from which to continue making that bread so needful for life.
As with any parable, we cannot push the image too far, or we will be simply injecting our own views into the message. But, there is this point to be drawn from the message: When we, as children of God, are working towards our intended purpose, we contribute not only to our own life, but to life more generally. When we fail to do so, we not only wind up ‘by ourselves alone’, but we fail to serve as life support for those whose lives were to be touched by ours. We may well put those others at risk by our failure to serve in our purpose. If there be any of Christ’s love and compassion in us, that ought surely to serve as a major incentive! This is, after all, the very thing that kept Him going during these final weeks. The first grain we might expect He is looking at here is Himself.
That is, after all, the clear primary point to His parable. We can take into the first person and fully understand His meaning: “Unless I fall to the earth an die, I am nothing and alone. But, if I die, I bear much fruit.” This, though it strikes the earthbound senses as being so wrong, is exactly what is in view when He says the Son of Man is to be glorified. How was He glorified? Frankly, if He had not undergone that death which lay before Him, if He had not accepted the humiliation and abuse and disdain that were sent His way, then He never would have arrived at the Ascension. If He had accepted any of those shortcuts that the devil proposed way back at the beginning, then, again He would remain a seed by itself alone. And we, in turn, would remain devoid of that life which is of greater value. We would remain in our condition of walking death, awaiting an eternity of sorrow.
Now, having made that point, Jesus begins to expand the meaning outward, first to His disciples. For, they are to find their example in the Teacher, having determined that His was indeed a life worthy of emulation, even unto death. So, He applies His parable to them, and this is where He is bearing down on a point made before. It’s a reminder, an establishing of key information by way of repetition under a new setting. “If you love your life, you’ll lost it. If you hate your life in this world, you keep it in eternity” (v25).
This message sounds incredibly harsh to our ears. Indeed, so harsh is it that many take it incorrectly and wind up in some manner of error along the lines of Manichaeism, supposing that we are to do our utmost to remain wholly untouched by physical existence and focus solely upon the spiritual. The grain of truth is there, but it is a deadened grain, incapable of promoting life any longer. You see, if we take this to the extreme of supposing that physical life is pure and unadulterated evil, then we have utterly missed the point. Indeed, in doing so, we come dangerously near to accusing God of creating evil, if we have not actually arrived at that point. No. This passage, being so central to the overall arc of Jesus’ teaching, must be treated with great care and understanding. It, more than any other part of this brief discourse, must be heard with the ears that originally listened.
So, let’s begin by recognizing just what manner of love Jesus is speaking of here, for we know full well that many-splendored love has many a Greek term to express its nuances. Here, the word is philoon, coming from the root of philos. It’s not the deep and compassionate concern of agape. Neither is it the amorously focused eros. It is philos, friendship, affection. Thus, in application, we’re talking about something with which we have, perhaps, shared interests, something we delight in or have affection for. As I said, we really need to listen to this with the ears of the disciples, to the degree that this is possible. To that end, it’s worth recognizing that the nature of Oriental cultures such as theirs is that emotions (and the concepts relaying those emotions) tend to run a bit hotter than we are used to in our Western settings. When such a love as this is expressed, it may not be more than an interest in the matter spoken of. In the same way, when we hear of hatred as we do here, it may express little more than indifference.
This is an important balance to our potential to over press the point of this verse. We might, then, look at this verse as saying, “He who delights in his life loses it. He who is indifferent to his life in this world shall preserve it into eternal life.” Yet, we are not done with taking due care in treating this verse. At a minimum, we must recognize that there are two distinct terms being translated as life here. That one which is so prominent in the conditional part of the verse is psucheen, or soul. In such a context as this, it is indicative of that animating part of our immaterial nature which is just that: nature. It is that part which we share in common with the animals. It is earthbound, temporal, corruptible. We, who are bound for eternity with joy unspeakable must understand that “this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality” (1Co 15:53-54). This is the fulfillment of the saying that “Death is swallowed up in victory”, which Paul quotes from Isaiah 25:8. Soul-life, which Jesus makes that much clearer by noting that it is life “in this world”, is not to be treated as evil, but it is to be seen as a matter of indifference, particularly when weighed against our heavenly purpose.
This is what ties us back to the grain seed, and makes the message one. If that grain of wheat refuses to be planted, it is because it prefers to cling to the temporary life of the one seed, preferring the short span of its existence as a seed to the eternal life that would be found in serving its heavenly purpose and producing new plants. So, Jesus, had He preferred extending the days of His earthly existence to fulfilling His purpose on the cross, would have failed utterly as the Redeemer of mankind. So, too, if we as His coworkers become too engrossed in the affairs of this short sojourn to be engaged in the work of the kingdom, we are showing that we are not truly His, and we ought to recognize the peril to ourselves. If that peril is insufficient to move us, then we ought also to recognize the great number of others whose lives we have left in that very same peril by our refusal to be what God has called us to be. If one thinks of this in those exponential terms that are made evident in each family tree, the cost of our disobedience becomes very high indeed!
If I, by my obedience, had told impacted so few as two lives, and these in turn impacted two more, and so on down the line, well: In very short order, the number of lives impacted for eternity becomes vast. Now, then: Imagine that same number of lives cut off by one man’s disobedience. Surely, this must move us to become more devoted to not just finding our purpose, but walking therein! Surely, it must move me!
Completing this verse: I had noted there are two aspects of life, two words for life, being used. The second is zooeen, a form of zoe, which is used to express “real, genuine life, actively devoted to God and therefore blessed even in this world, but more so after the resurrection.” Thus Thayer’s lexicon gives us the meaning. Zhodiates says it is a life which expresses “all the highest and best which Christ is and which He gives to the saints”. This is the eternal stuff. This is the spirit-life, the life that survives death. This is that Life which the Bread of Life provides, which having gained, we need hunger no more. Eternal bread for eternal life, satisfying an eternal hunger: That’s the message.
Set in the context of what Jesus is saying, the contrast is clear: earthly, soulish life as a mere animate object versus eternal, spirit life as a member of the household of faith. Indeed, it should be held in view that eternity awaits in any case. The spirit of man exists, whether it be allied with God or arrayed against Him. But, the true, eternal life of which Jesus is the source is by definition a life allied with God, and a life which will spend an eternity in fellowship with Him, enjoying Him and worshiping Him. The only other option presented is an eternity spent separated from Him with, as the parable of Lazarus and the rich man demonstrates, the recognition that such fellowship as the Living enjoy could have been yours. That rich man we are shown is in agony for his misery, for his eternal thirst (having rejected the Living Water). He can see the joys of heaven, as it were, just beyond his reach, yet the chasm that divides is impossible to cross. It is equally impossible for those on heaven’s side of it, for they might otherwise be moved by compassion to act contrary to God’s decree, and this must not be allowed. For, sin has no place in heaven, nor rebellion which is its fruit.
Here is one more aspect to be born in mind as we consider what Jesus is driving at: As John understands it and teaches it, under the sure guidance of the Holy Spirit, this real life, this eternal life, begins here during our earthly existence, coming into at least a partially manifested reality at the moment of faith first believing. By corollary, I suppose we must understand that eternal damnation is likewise begun here during our earthly existence. The concept of being in a living hell, or hell on earth, is quite likely more accurate than those who express that concept suppose it to be. When Joshua challenged the people of God to “choose today”, the weight of that choice included both present life and eternal life. So, too, our choices carry that same weight. This same weight is being brought to bear upon the point Jesus is making in this current lesson.
Let’s try it as the Bible in Basic English offers up the passage. “He who is in love with life will have it taken from him; and he who has no care for his life in this world will keep it for ever and ever.” Actually, this is a case where The Living Bible also gets at the core of it by its paraphrase: “If you love your life down here-you will lose it. If you despise your life down here-you will exchange it for eternal glory.” I would say, however, that ‘despise’ might be overstating the intent just a little. I think the BBE has done better in restraining it to ‘has no care’. That’s the point, and it sits well with the rest of what Jesus has taught. Be anxious for nothing. Have no care as to what you’ll eat, what you’ll wear. Your Father’s got you covered anyway, and besides, there’s more important matters to be focused on. Seek first the kingdom and its righteousness, knowing that all these things will be added. Seek to serve and know that your Good and Perfect Master will care Perfectly for your needs as you do so. As to the number of your days? They are in His books, and who shall cause Him to change what He has written? Be of good cheer, then, satisfied to serve on this sojourn so long as He requires and satisfied to come home what your term of service is done.
I mentioned that this matter of focus was one Jesus had addressed repeatedly. One such occasion comes amidst the instructions gives to the twelve before sending them out on their first mission (Mt 10). The general sense of that passage is that they are not doing this to earn a living, nor to be freeloaders on society, but to serve the kingdom. As such, the point remains much the same: Don’t get caught up in matters of this life. Get caught up in what matters in the kingdom life, knowing this life will be seen to by your Father. We see the point made again during Peter’s rebuke. Having heard Jesus teaching about what would soon be happening to Him at the hands of man, Peter was offended, so offended he figured he should correct Jesus on this score. Of course this won’t happen to You, Jesus! You’re the Son of God! Jesus rebukes Peter in turn with a very fundamental point: “You’re not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s” (Mk 8:33), which is followed by this message about life focus, and which further leads to this: “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?” (Mk 8:35). This same event is covered in Matthew 16:23-28 and Luke 9:20-27.
Finally, we hear this same message about those who seek to preserve their life in this world as part of Jesus’ discourse on the end times (Lk 17). There, Jesus tells His disciples that the end times will be much like those earlier judgment days, such as the day of Noah’s flood or the day of Sodom’s destruction. Most immediately, this point about trying to preserve this life comes with this introduction: “Remember Lot’s wife” (Lk 17:32-33). The common thread that ties together the several uses of this particular message is simply this: To be focused on this life is to be focused on death. To place this life above the considerations of the spirit, to place greater worth on the present than on the kingdom, is to forfeit all future. I think that last calling to mind of Lot’s wife really rams it home. Here she had been rescued from all that Sodom represented. God, rather than destroying her and her husband, had seen fit to remove them from the scene of His judgment, with but one instruction: Don’t look back.
This is our single instruction as we walk out the life of the redeemed in what remains of our earthly days. This is the call to every Christian: Don’t look back. You have been pulled free of all that. You have been forcibly removed from the death camps. Where you had no cause to expect anything but the destruction which every man has earned for himself in those camps, you were granted to make this journey into life and hope. But, it seems to ever be the case with us that, seeing the challenges of this journey, we start longing for the ease we knew back in the camps. Israel felt this way coming out of Egypt. Lot’s wife apparently felt this way coming out of Sodom, and all she had to do was take a brief hike into the mountains. Doesn’t seem that much to ask compared to 40 years of wandering. But, it was more than she was ready for. She looked back, and that was her own moment of judgment.
As I say, this is our instruction, as well. Having been pulled out of all those old habits of death, all that mass of sin, the last thing we should do is find ourselves longing for what used to be. The newness of life into which we have stepped ought to be so marvelous as to cast all such thoughts from our minds. But, we all know that the truth is quite different. Those old things retain a certain attraction for us which, if we are not careful, we find drawing us back. Maybe just a sampling would be alright. Maybe just this once. And before we know it, we’re deep in need of repenting once again. Sadder still is the fact that we manage to convince ourselves that this is acceptable, given our fallen nature. We console ourselves with the fact that if everybody suffers this duplicity in themselves, then we oughtn’t to stress over it. I tell you (and in doing so, I tell me) that while we perhaps ought not to stress over it, we certainly ought to mourn over it. We dare not allow this self-justification to take root. We dare not arrive at the very mindset that Paul condemned, where by our actions we indicate that we really do suppose that somehow continuing in our sins is a means by which we show God more glorious (Ro 3:8). Indeed, in so much as this is our true mindset, however much we seek to hide that truth in clever phrases, our condemnation is just.
These are, after all, the behaviors of that seed which refuses to be planted. These are the activities of a mind more interested in being comfortable here and now than in securing an anchorage in the heavenly port which is to be our destination. These are the activities of one whose concern for this life far and away exceeds that concern he has for eternity. Indeed, they are the activities of one who has allowed the concerns of life to completely choke out and obscure any thought for eternity. As such, they are the activities of one at great and near unto certain risk of forfeiting that very eternity for which the Christ came and He died. Such a one can make ever so many claims to being a Christian, and can parade out all manner of circumstantial evidence in the attempt to back his claim, but none of it will matter. That would seem to me to be the conclusion to be reached. It is of an accord with the parable of the sheep and the goats. Many will say they did these things for Me, but the truth is they never knew Me. For all their activity, they never really understood.
Lord, let that not be my story. I am forced to recognize how much this does describe my present, and I pray for strength of character to change. I pray that as You so will and work within me, I will indeed be found one who wills and works with You and not against You. While I remain keenly aware that my perfection is not to be expected until I stand with You, and I know the longing in me that would that it were sooner. But, let not that knowledge remain for me an excuse. Let that longing translate into a godly striving rather than frustration. And, Father, grant unto me the courage to stand steadfast for Your Truth, as regards the issue with which I have been wrestling these last few months. Grant me the wisdom and the compassion to render Your answer and only Your answer, and to do so with such loving tenderness as may make it the more palatable to whichever of us may wind up hearing an answer other than what we might prefer. Truly, or as truly as we are able, we are both submitted to the answer of Your will. So, let it be rendered and so let it be done in us. Amen.
In all fairness, I hear a great deal of the answer and wisdom being sought in the message of this very verse. Where is our focus and concern to be? It is to be on that eternal life which lies ahead. Yes, we ought to expect that this eternal condition of blessedness has begun even in the midst of this earthly life. Yet, we are given no cause to suppose that this fact indicates that the remainder of our earthly life should be one of ease and comfort. We are actually informed quite bluntly that we should expect quite the opposite. “I have been teaching you on these things so that you will have peace in Me. In the world, you have tribulation. But take courage in this: I have overcome the world” (Jn 16:33). Comforting isn’t it? You have tribulation now. It’s a given. Expect it. Like poor Lazarus from the parable, this present life is hard for you. And, my but we have a pretty low definition for hardship today!
Every one of those sitting and listening to Jesus in that moment would face death head on because they were steadfast in faith. Likewise, those Christians in the first century or two, who faced persecutions most heinous at the hands of their Roman overlords. Likewise, those in later centuries who stood for the Truth against a church grown politically powerful even as it became spiritually dead. For us, suffering consists in a certain tightness to the checkbook, or a physical condition that doesn’t just disappear because we’re God’s kids. For us, the simple facts of old age are viewed as persecution and tribulation. Whatever should we think were we to face challenges like those who hold the faith amidst a sea of Muslims? Whatever should we think were our practices outlawed by government decree, with threat of imprisonment and ‘reeducation’ camps for failure to comply?
The plain and simple message being relayed by every occurrence of this oft-repeated message from Jesus is this: Our focus and concern is to be for the eternal life ahead, not the physical life at hand, which must pass away. As large as physical death looms in our thinking, it really touches only the temporal, only the earthly. The body over which we take such great concern today is not the body that will be with us for eternity. The corruptible must put on incorruption. The mortal must put on immortality. For, it is an eternity that lies ahead, not four score and twenty. Indeed, that four score and twenty that so captures the concerns of the living will be, as Paul saw it, nothing by way of comparison. The sufferings of this life will be recognized as wholly and utterly inconsequential when set beside the eternal weight of glory stored up on our behalf, if such be our case.
The corollary is equally true. The pleasures of physical health and material bounty during the course of this life, as nice as they seem at the time, will count for nothing and less than nothing when set beside the weight of what is stored up for us in eternity. That, my friends, will be true whether it be a weight of glory that awaits us, or a weight of punishment. For all that modern man seeks to extend and preserve his life on this earth, to delay the inevitable, the extent to which he has even the imagined power to shift things is still somewhat less than a second’s difference gained over a millennium. Nothing! Pointless! Set against the scale of eternity, the difference between 50 years of lifespan and 100 remains nothing.
The lesson of Lazarus and the rich man, like the lesson taught here in the simple image of that seed of wheat is this: If we are consumed with this life, then this life will be the sum total of our reward. The seed of our life will remain a seed alone, whether we achieve 100 years of life or half that much, that will be it for the bright side of life. Can I put it even more bluntly? Because, we need this hammered home with such force as will break through our thick headed focus on the present. If love of this life leads to loss of the next, the real and eternal life, then we must reach this conclusion: Love of this life is sin. Preference for this life to the neglect of kingdom concerns is a sin. For, it is only sin that requires the punishment of that second and real death which is an eternity of punishment and separation from God.
If we spend this life preserving this life then this life is it. If, on the other hand, we take this life as a seed sown into the field of kingdom purpose, then the life ahead for us will be rich indeed! Not only that, but the life of the present will be made richer, whether it be filled with pain or comfort, with bounty or want. Much is said today of seed faith and the like, generally suggesting we put our money into this or that ministry. And, to be sure, there are ministries to which we ought to contribute willingly and with confidence. There are others, though, and they are the more likely to talk up seed faith, who are at the very least suspect as to their teaching, and suspect as to their motive. The seed faith that the Bible teaches us is a seed faith of life. It’s an attitude towards life. It involves our finances to be sure, but it involves so much more.
We go through life consumed. Much as we cannot avoid being slave to somebody, whether it be Satan and sin unto death or God and righteousness unto life; even so, we cannot avoid being consumed. The only question is what consumes our time and our attention: matters of this life, or matters of kingdom significance? If we are ashamed of the Gospel, then the answer is clearly: Matters of this life. If all our prayers are of that ATM variety, then the answer is clearly: Matters of this life. If our focus is so much on health and wealth, then the answer is clearly: Matters of this life.
The cure is to sow this life. Let matters of this life die and be buried. Let the kingdom consume us to such a degree that all of these other issues are of no significance. I am not calling for a vow of poverty, for God calls for no such vow. I am calling for a vow of contentment. How greatly our God longs for us to rest in the contentment of knowing we are under His Providential care. How much my soul longs to rest in this place that Paul revealed, “content in whatever circumstances I am” (Php 4:11-13). “I know how to get along with little and I know how to live in prosperity. In any and every circumstance I have learned to be both filled and hungry, to know abundance and need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.”
Let me tell you, for Paul that translated as the answer to his dilemma as to whether to seek a continuance of life or to rush home to Jesus. He knew his own greatest happiness lay in the latter answer. But, he knew his kingdom purpose required the former. It is more beneficial for you that I remain, and therefore I am well contented to remain, even though my own greatest joy lies in going. I am a seed to be sown for my Christ. And, as a seed in His hand, I shall be gladly sown wherever He may choose, to whatever purpose He may choose. I am contented. He who knit me together in my mother’s womb did not make a mistake in His knitting. I am fearfully and wonderfully made just as I am made, and I am perfectly fit for His perfect purpose just as I am made. He has numbered my days, and He didn’t approximate. Therefore, let me be committed to use those days He has granted me to best purpose. Let this seed be expended as will bring the greatest bounty to His kingdom, and I shall be more than well satisfied.
Finally, with verse 26, we come to the more immediate answer to those Greeks who are seeking to speak with Jesus. The Living Bible also sees this verse addressed specifically to those men, giving the opening of the verse as, “If these Greeks want to be my disciples, tell them…”. For my own part, given the actual wording of the verse, I would suppose that these Greeks were standing by. As such, they have heard all that led up to this final point. They have heard this lesson on the value of the temporal versus the value of the eternal, and the opposition these two categories stand in. They have heard the rather dark message about the seed that must die to live on. Now, with this final piece, they are being brought headlong into the moment of crisis. They are being handed the, “choose you this day” calling of God.
This becomes particularly apt as we consider that these men are most likely from the number of the God-fearers. They have not committed. They have not committed to God, or to any god, really. They’ve been playing the odds, trying to hedge their bets by worshiping anybody and everybody that they get wind of. That’s got to make for a busy schedule! Be that as it may, they are in town to honor the God of Israel, knowing enough to know that this Passover feast is one of the required times for those who would worship Him to be in Jerusalem. So, here they are. But, what of the rest of the year? What of next month? Will they continue to stop at the point of fearing God and refuse to step into the security of being His?
That’s the message Jesus is delivering. If you look to serve Me, it’s 100% or it’s nothing. You want to serve? Follow! Here, it is well to understand that He’s not just talking about tagging along, hanging at the edge of the crowd. He’s not talking about being seen with Him, or showing up on occasion. There’s no place in this concept of following for the twice a year attendee at church, there for the high holy days of Christmas and Easter, but never in between. No, this is the following of a disciple. This is being committed to the ways of the Master. This is striving to be wholly conformed to His ways and His character. As Thayer’s gives the sense, it is to conform wholly to the example of this Teacher “in living and if need be in dying also.” It’s the requirement, as a seed, to decide that you’d rather bear fruit than preserve your seediness.
It’s interesting, in light of this verse, that Table Talk is discussing the matter of the perseverance of the saints this morning. No coincidence, to be sure, that my Father has once more managed my schedule with such perfection of timing, but it’s interesting to lay these points side by side. You see, what Jesus is telling these Greeks, and thereby telling us, is that He has no interest in part time servants. When called to choose, we are not given the option of both. It’s either choose Him or choose not Him. We are either committed to Him or we are not. And, by the first of the commandments we are very clear that having chosen Him, He makes no room for any other. Thou shalt have no other (Ex 20:3). He’s very exclusive, this God of ours. And a Jealous, consuming fire to boot (Dt 4:24).
So, what has this to do with perseverance of the saints? Just this: we are inclined to measure the effectiveness of our efforts by the conversion experience. We see that emotional response that leads some soul to repeat the sinner’s prayer, or whatever other requirement we may have set before them on this occasion, and we think that’s it! He’s in! But, that’s no evidence of anything real. The proof is in the staying power. I’m not, surely not, suggesting that unless there is an immediate and permanent radical change of character with a complete and utter rejection of every sin, then nothing happened. No, no. I’d have to reject myself as being a true believer were that the case. My own advance has been so gradual that at times I despair of any progress. But, it’s there and I know it. No, it’s not the flashy thing that we want it to be. But, it is a steady trajectory. As the writer of the Message put it in his earlier book on the Psalms of Ascent, it’s a long journey in one direction. There may be hills and valleys along the way. The contrail that marks our trajectory may not be a smooth straight line, but rather show evidence of wavering. But, the overall trend line is clear. Do you see? Let me take this sentence from this morning’s Table Talk article: “It is the consistent, continual possession of faith that saves us, not its mere profession.”
Put differently, it is that degree of commitment that marks out the disciple from the mere onlooker. As much as we may thrill at that momentary display of conviction – after all, it comes as a confirming evidence of our own fruitfulness – that momentary conviction is not what Jesus is interested in. He looks deeper. What He wants to know is this: Are you all in? Because, if you’re not all in with Him then you’re not really in at all.
What He likely measured in these God-fearers was that they were not yet ready to make that commitment of themselves. They honored God, but they would not bind themselves to the requirements of His Law. They would not suffer to be marked by the circumcision which was the physical evidence of a covenant relationship under the terms He had thus far laid out. They wanted the benefits without the effort. Yet, they were not wholly without effort. They would honor Him according to His ways up to a point. Had they not, after all, come to be here for this required, Paschal meal? Were they not seeking to show a certain desire to be numbered among His people? But, they were still, as it were, dipping their feet in the stream.
Why was this, do you suppose? Why the approach, but not the arrival? Well, I think we can be certain of this much: God is drawing them. I think, to the degree that there are those we might count as God-fearers in our own day, the same could be said of them: God is drawing them. Then, there is this: They are seeking audience with Jesus, and what has He Himself said of this: No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him (Jn 6:44). Well, here they are. That should tell us something. Our mission, in this case, is not to try to take the measure of the man ourselves, as if we were able to judge the heart. No. Our mission is to make disciples of such as these. And what does that mean? Well, first and foremost it means that, like our own Teacher, we must make plain the reality of the choice being set before them. We must make plain that it’s not a garden path to which they are being led, but a road filled with trials. We must make plain the reward, and that this reward will require of them that very perseverance which belongs to the saints. We must make clear that this is nothing they can work themselves up to, but that it is a matter that relies wholly and exclusively upon that faith which the Christ of God has graciously imparted (that gracious gift without which they would not be drawn here). We must make clear that there can be no such thing as a part time Christian. There can be no such thing as a compartmentalized faith that applies on Sundays, but gets put away during the rest of the week. It’s an “All or nothing grace”, as Charlie Peacock so neatly phrases it. It either is or it isn’t.
Again, this message must be accompanied by a clear explanation of the nature of sin, of redemption, and of that slow, sometimes unsteady progress which is the fruit of grace. We must feed them the Truth lest the first setback prove so discouraging that they throw in the towel. We must be certain that we and they both understand that this life is a bit of an endurance test, and that we are called to stand and stand some more until that day when the test is over for us. That’s going to take commitment, and it’s probably going to take a more than occasional recommitment. It’s going to be a day by day thing, with the need to draw on His accounts for strength morning by morning, to draw on His accounts for forgiveness evening by evening.
Somewhere of late I was reading of this idea of keeping short accounts with God, I believe it was in regard to David. Ah! Yes, it was this Sunday’s sermon. David kept short accounts, his lifestyle being reflected in the things He wrote in Psalm 139. The cry of this psalm is the cry of David’s character. He knew he was secure in God, but he knew he was far from the perfection that God requires. Search me, O God, and make my heart known to me so that I can deal with it. Try me as regards my thought life and correct all that is wrong there. See (as I know You do) any hurtful way in me and bring it to my attention, then lead me back into the way of righteousness, the everlasting way. Yes, I am heavily paraphrasing here, as is my wont, but that is the sense of the matter. That’s the thought process of the committed. That’s the mark of the disciple. There is going to be that certain anguish over what we know is our condition. Yet, there is also going to be the confident calm of knowing that even so, we remain in God’s loving care. There is the determination to make sure that those sins we are made aware of are dealt with in short order, even if we are nearly certain to be dealing with them again. Today’s sin is enough. Let us deal with that, and tomorrow will have problems enough for us to deal with tomorrow. Don’t let it rest. Don’t let it slide. Don’t procrastinate, for we are never guaranteed a tomorrow on which to repent.
With that, I think I have said all that I should have to say on this passage. May I be such a one as takes that message to heart for myself, and if any be reading this besides me, may you do likewise. If there is something in here that is finding a sympathetic vibration of sorts in your spirit, then don’t set it aside. Neither just take that momentary excitement as being enough. Find a place where you can indeed be discipled in the Truth of the Gospel, both as to its message and as to its practice, and be a planted seed. Seek Him and indeed He shall be found by you. For, inasmuch as you are seeking Him, I dare say that He has already found you, is already calling you. But, be prepared! It is indeed a moment of crisis, a time for decision. So, choose life!
