The Law of God's Kingdom

made with Proclaim

David Gayle Woods

The Troy Holiness Church

Sermon • Submitted a year ago • Presented a year ago • 32:22

John 12:20–26

Self-Denial

Kingdom

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John 12:20–26 ESV

Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

Max Lucado tells about taking his two daughters to a park. They went into a plastic ball pit to play. One of those 3-foot-deep pits filled with thousands and thousands of lightweight, plastic balls. Max’s older daughter did just fine, but the younger one was only three, and she struggled.

As soon as she stepped into the pit, she filled her arms with balls. It’s hard enough for a three-year-old to walk through a waist-deep pile of balls with your arms spread to keep your balance — and it’s impossible to do so with your arms full. So little Andrea took a step and fell. She tried to get up without letting go of the balls. She couldn’t do it and began to cry.

Max walked over to the edge of the pit and said, “Andrea, let go of the balls, and you can walk.” “No,” she screamed getting deeper and deeper. Trying to be wise and patient, Max said, “Andrea, if you let the balls go, you’ll be able to walk.” She said, “No!” took two steps and fell again.

Parents weren’t allowed in the pit, so Max asked his older daughter, Jenna, to come over and help her sister get back on her feet. But Jenna wasn’t strong enough, and Andrea was still hanging on to the balls she grabbed when she first stepped into the pit.

Jenna said, “Daddy, I can’t get her up.” So Max said, with a great deal more irritation in his voice, “Andrea, let go of the balls so you can get up!” The cry from beneath the balls was muffled but clear: “Nooo!”

Max thought to himself, “She’s got what she wants, and she’s going to hold on to it if it kills her.” The next step was to tell Jenna to take the balls away from her sister. So they engaged in hand-to-hand combat for a while, until finally the attendant told Max he could go on in to get them out.

Later Max reflected, “What is it that makes children immobilize themselves by clutching toys so tightly?”

Then he thought, “Whatever it is, they learned it from their parents. That child’s determination to hold onto those balls is nothing compared to the grips we put on the things this world has to offer.

“And if you think Jenna’s job of trying to take those balls away from Andrea was tough, try prying our fingers away from our earthly treasures.

“The way we clutch our possessions and our pleasures, you’d think we couldn’t live without them. Our resistance to the Father is just as childish as Andrea’s. God wants us to loosen our grip for our own good, but sometimes we refuse to let go.”

(Source: Max Lucado, from a sermon by Rick Crandall, “Start Walking in Purity” 7/13/08, SermonCentral.com)

Today, our scripture teaches us the Law of God’s Kingdom - a law, a principle - that runs directly counter to the world’s dominant philosophy of me-first, protect my interests, what’s-in-it-for-me.

(pause)

As we begin to study our scripture today, the context of this story is key. Last week, we looked at the verses immediately preceding our text today, John 12:12-19, which record the Triumphal Entry of Jesus into Jerusalem by John.

As John described that first Palm Sunday, the crowds cried out, claiming Jesus to be their long-expected political and military savior. The disciples did not understand the significance of Jesus’ entry nor of his riding a donkey. The Pharisees, however, were adamant.

John 12:19 ESV

So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.”

These religious leaders were distraught. Nothing could be done to stop this charlatan, this breaker of the Sabbath, this imposter. The whole world would follow Jesus!

(pause)

And immediately after we read these words, we find Greeks - Gentiles, the people of the world, who had come to worship at the feast - seeking a word with Jesus.

(pause)

We don’t know if the events in our text come immediately at the conclusion of the Triumphal Entry or if it was some time later.

Reading the other gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, we see that apparently on Palm Sunday, Jesus went into the Temple, looked around and then went back to Bethany.

On the next day, when Jesus returned to the Temple, he drove out the moneychangers and those who were selling animals for the sacrifices.

Mark 11:17 ESV

And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.”

Luke 19:47 ESV

And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him,

Some commentators suggest that these Greeks overheard Jesus proclaiming that his house was to be a house of prayer for all the nations. Encouraged by this inclusion of the world, they then sought an audience with Jesus.

The setting of our story is also uncertain. However, since Jesus was teaching in the Temple daily, some have suggested that the Greeks may have come to the Court of Gentiles in the Temple as Jesus was teaching further inward.

Stopped by the regulations banning Gentiles from going further, they then asked Philip for an interview with Jesus.

The fact that they approached Philip seems instructive also. The name Philip was a Greek name, rather than a Jewish name. Furthermore, Philip came from Bethsaida, a Greek region.

But for John it is their theological symbolism that is important. These God-fearers represent the “scattered children of God” of 11:52. They are the “other sheep” of 10:16. The question they ask in 12:21 is reminiscent of the language of discipleship we have seen earlier in the gospel. They want to “see” Jesus. On one level it refers to an opportunity to talk with Jesus and ask questions (cf. “see” in Luke 8:20; 9:9). However, the verbs of seeing often mean far more. They are invitations to belief; these are foreigners who now stand ready to join the flock of Christ.

Burge, G. M. (2000). John (p. 343). Zondervan Publishing House.

(pause)

We should stop here to make a key observation. People who were spiritually hungry sought out someone that they felt like they could relate to in order to meet Jesus.

(pause)

Yes, it is important that we, as followers of God, maintain a certain separation from the world. We must be careful that we influence the world, like salt flavors food, rather than being dragged into the world’s sin, like Lot in Sodom.

(pause)

At the same time, there are ways - and we should seek them out - that we can build bridges, means of connection with the sinful world so that they have an avenue by which they can be introduced to our Lord and Savior.

(pause)

I know, I know. We’re getting the in the weeds a bit of the background of our story. But there’s a reason for this.

(pause)

In this story, Jesus made a statement that we might overlook in mere casual reading. But this statement is a key moment in John’s gospel.

John 12:23 ESV

And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

Throughout John’s gospel we have read Jesus saying the hour had not yet come. In John 2, at the wedding in Cana of Galilee, an embarrassing spectacle was on the brink. The wine had run out. Jesus’ mother pulled her son aside: “They have no wine.”

John 2:4 ESV

And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.”

During the Feast of Booths, Jesus went to Jerusalem privately, but in the middle of the feast entered the Temple and began teaching. The religious leaders debated with him.

The people knew the religious leaders wanted to kill Jesus, and they wondered at their lack of action. But they were not ready to trust in Jesus either. Jesus clearly told them that he knew the Father, had come from the Father, indeed had been sent by the Father.

John 7:30 ESV

So they were seeking to arrest him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come.

In the next chapter, as Jesus taught in the Temple, he boldly declared, John 8:12 “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.””

As Jesus spoke about the Father’s witness of him, the people challenged him. Jesus told them that if they knew him, they would know the Father also.

John 8:20 ESV

These words he spoke in the treasury, as he taught in the temple; but no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.

(pause)

Now, as the Greeks - the world - came to Jesus… his hour had come.

(pause)

The “hour of glorification” points to his return to the Father through his death on the cross, his resurrection, and his exaltation. Therefore something has changed; the Greeks signal the closing of a chapter for Jesus. His ministry in Judaism is finished and he now belongs to the wider world.

Burge, G. M. (2000). John (p. 343). Zondervan Publishing House.

(pause)

Isn’t this observation thrilling? Up to this point, God’s efforts at redemption were focused on his chosen people, the Israelites. But now God reveals that all people anywhere may be saved by placing their trust in Jesus as Lord and Savior.

(pause)

In a few short days, Jesus would be lifted up - His arms stretched wide on the Cross - signifying God’s loving embrace to a world lost and dying in sin!

(pause)

Interestingly, we are not told if Jesus actually ever spoke to these Greeks. But Jesus used this moment, as he looked ahead to his death and resurrection to teach a crucial concept about the Kingdom of God. Indeed, we find here in our text: “The Law of the Kingdom of God.”

John 12:24 ESV

Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

Like a grain of wheat must be buried in the ground in order for it to give life to a plant that bears a great harvest, Jesus would die on the Cross, paying the penalty of the world’s sin so that all who trust in him might have eternal life.

And, in the same way, the disciple of Jesus must die - die to Self - in order to truly experience life - abundant, fruitful, eternal life.

Big Idea: The disciple dies to Self to live for Christ.

In the following two verses, Jesus expanded on the Law of God’s Kingdom.

1. Discipleship involves denial (of self), v. 25.

John 12:25 ESV

Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

This principle, like so many of God’s truths, are in direct opposition to the popular thinking and accepted beliefs of the world.

Our world does its’ best to preserve one’s life, for fear of losing it. If you watch or listen to many commercials, you will see this illustrated over and over again.

From the commerical for Ozempic to any number of food items to the many medications for a myriad of physical problems, our world does its best to preserve life.

(pause)

Of course, it is not wrong to eat healthy or to take precautions to guard against sickness or death!

(pause)

But we know what Jesus was saying - it is the emphasis on only living for this world, this life.

Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

(CT Studd)

Jesus illustrated this misguided priority when he told the parable of the rich fool.

Luke 12:16–21 ESV

And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” ’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

Jesus told another story with a similar point about a rich man and a beggar. The rich man feasted every day. The beggar suffered terribly and longed for crumbs from the rich man’s table.

Both died. The beggar was received into Heaven, but the rich man was tormented in Hell. The rich man looked up and saw the beggar with Abraham and asked for mercy - just a drop of water to quench his thirst.

Luke 16:25 ESV

But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish.

(pause)

Are we living for what will soon perish and vanish away? Or, have we chosen to deny ourselves the pleasures of this world so that we might enjoy eternity with Jesus?

(pause)

2. Discipleship involves a direction (from self), v. 26a.

John 12:26 ESV

If anyone serves me, he must follow me…

In Jesus’ day, the disciple was a person who would literally follow his rabbi wherever the rabbi went. Like the disciples who Jesus called left their livelihood - their boats and nets, their tax collecting, and other jobs, the disciple would quit their job to follow their rabbi. They would eat with the rabbi, sleep with the rabbi, learn from the rabbi, and obey their rabbi.

(pause)

We don’t have to quit our jobs necessarily, sell our homes, and leave our family in order to follow Jesus today. But like the first disciples who followed Jesus, our lives should be marked by a distinct direction.

(pause)

We follow Christ, not the world!

(pause)

Yes, this has been a challenge for God’s people from the very beginning. Like Abraham who was called by God to leave his extended family in Haran and travel to an unknown destination, following the voice of God, we are also called to follow God, as He reveals himself through His Word and the voice of the Holy Spirit.

(pause)

We must be careful not to follow the world.

(pause)

It’s fascinating the terminology that our tech-crazy, sophisticated world uses. We talk about how many followers we have on Instagram, Facebook, X, or the other social media platforms. We talk about who we follow. We congratulate ourselves on how many likes our posts, stories, etc. gain.

(pause)

Jesus is calling us to follow him, first and foremost, instead of the many other voices calling us. Jesus is calling us to seek His approval instead of the world’s likes. Jesus is calling us to devote ourselves to him, regardless of how that affects our follower count.

(pause)

And when we follow Christ, we will always find the road ends at a cross.

(pause)

3. Discipleship involves devotion (to God before Self), v. 26b.

John 12:26 ESV

If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

Three times in this one short verse, Jesus used a form of the word “serve”. The person who serves Jesus follows him. The person who serves Jesus will necessarily be with him, because he serves Jesus. The person who serves Jesus will be honored by the Father.

(pause)

One of the great challenges of discipleship is perseverance. It is easier to make a start serving God than it is to stick it out.

I am reminded of a scene in that classic allegory of the Christian faith, Pilgrim’s Progress, where Christian finds a man climbing the wall to get to the narrow way that led to Celestial City. The man thought he could take a shortcut and get to Heaven.

(pause)

This man is not alone. Many think they can take the easy way to Heaven. Some believe that instead of truly confessing their sin and surrendering to Christ’s lordship, they can gain salvation by a reformed life and good works.

(pause)

Some believe that as long as they believe the right things, they will be saved. Their theology is right, but their lifestyle is not.

(pause)

Some believe that as long as they put in the minimum effort as a Christian, they will be okay.

(pause)

A line from my father comes to my mind: “God’s minimum is your maximum!”

(pause)

Yes, this is the Law of God’s Kingdom. If we would experience abundant, eternal life, we must first die!

(pause)

Big Idea: The disciple dies to Self to live for Christ.

The follower of Jesus, the disciple, must deny self. If we continue to live for Self, we will find our priorities confused, our loyalty to Christ compromised.

Discipleship involves a direction. We no longer follow the voices of the world or the dictates of Self. We walk in Jesus’ footsteps. And Jesus will always lead us to the Cross.

Discipleship involves devotion. Following Jesus is not a hobby, a vacation, or a temporary job. Following our Savior becomes everything for us.

The world urges us to preserve Self. Christ calls for us to lose our life.

The world teaches us to provide for Self. Jesus calls us to serve Him.

The world calls for us to please Self. Jesus calls for us to receive God’s honor as we faithfully serve him.

If you would truly be part of the Kingdom of God, you must surrender all to Christ in order to truly experience life!

As the Holy Spirit has spoken into your heart today, what has he revealed to you about your level of discipleship?

Have you truly denied yourself to follow Jesus?

Are you following Jesus, Self, or the world?

Are you wholly devoted to Jesus, seeking only His pleasure in your life?

Earlier, I quoted a couple lines of a poem written by…

Charles Thomas Studd, better known as C. T. Studd, was a British missionary. He was born on December 2, 1860, in Spratton, United Kingdom, into a family of wealth and privilege. In 1883 he graduated from Trinity College, Cambridge, and in 1885 entered the missions field with Hudson Taylor in China.

C.T. Studd spent his life in dedicated service to the Lord, serving in China, India, and Africa. In 1913 he formed the World Evangelisation Crusade (now WEC International) which operates to this day.

In 1888, he married Priscilla Livingstone Stewart, and they had four daughters and two sons. She died in 1929, and C.T, died on July 16, 1931, in Ibambi, Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Only One Life, Twill Soon Be Past by C.T. Studd

Two little lines I heard one day, Traveling along life’s busy way; Bringing conviction to my heart, And from my mind would not depart;