The Father
THE FATHER’S HONOR-ROLL
“If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour” (John 12:26)
I want to say a word about “The Father’s honor-roll; not the honor-roll of your respective high schools; not the deans list of the university from which you academicians matriculated; but the Father’s honor-roll. The text tells us that there is a possibility of being on the Father’s honor-roll; even when we’ve been overlooked down here.
This little pericopé; this sequential segmented scene of scripture; that I want to talk about, this paragraphic emphasis, literally raised my attention, because, it is in the setting of the Greeks having heard about the resurrection of Lazarus. And so, the text says, they came, saying, “…Sir we would see Jesus.” And Jesus responds, “The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified.” And of course that hour is the cross. And He’s going to be glorified in His resurrection; He’s going to be glorified in His reigning at the right hand of the Father; glorified when He returns and stops in mid-air… All of that will follow!
But Jesus says, since you want to see me! {Phillip and Andrew had brought this message to him}. He then gives in verse 24, (by the use of the metaphor of a grain of wheat); an example of what it is like to see Him in the totality of His ministry. And, He introduces this metaphor with the words “Verily, verily.” Now that always draws our attention to a strong point of doctrinal truth. “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.” So, we can logically conclude then, that the grain of wheat is Jesus Himself. Because that’s who they asked to see! And, He is saying in essence, if you really want to see me, then examine this metaphor; examine the grain of wheat.
“[And if it falls] into the ground…” You’ll recall that He was here thirty-three years, and when He died on a hill called Calvary; He did die! Now if I were in revival, you know I’d have to park there awhile. Because, He died until the grave got sick of the stomach and started vomiting up its dead. He died until the elements of nature started suffering fits of cosmic epilepsy! He died until the dead in Christ got up on the world’s first Easter morning, and staged a protest march down the streets of Jerusalem. …died until Sister Mary; she came running, running for to see! He did die! Died until the centurion said, “surely, He must be the Son of God.”
But He gives an explanation of the example in verse 25. Listed carefully to that verse, He says, “He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.” Now that’s the explanation of verse 24. And then He says in verse 26, the possibility of you experiencing what I’m talking about is also there, because you can be on my Father’s honor-roll. The Father will honor you, if you follow and serve. But the definitive explanation is in verse 25. And that verse says if a man actually “loves his life; he will lose it.”
Now, I’d like to take a moment and examine a word or two in that verse. “If he loves his life…” Now that word “love” in this text is not “agapao,” its “phileo”! It’s a deep and warm appreciation for my human perspective, in terms of mind, emotions, and will. It’s how I see things! In other words, I have a deep love for my own definitive conclusion about the resolution of anything that is under consideration, negotiation, or discussion. Without a frame of reference of the mind set of the Master.
This word “life” also helps us out here. Because it is not “bios,” it is not the word of biology; it’s not “zōē,” it’s not the word of zoology; it’s “psuchē.” It’s literally “he that loves his own soul.” It’s his attitude, his ambition, and his activity. You remember the rich farmer; said, “I will say to my…” “psuchē,” my own soul. And then he talked about his own attitude, his own activity, and his own ambition, without ever a reference to God.
And Jesus says, in this test, [“If I love my own thought pattern,”] —over against revelation! If I operate on my own feelings —over against the intelligence of God! If I act out of order to what He’s already said! It’s my own soul that I’m in love with. And that’s what I’m functioning by! So, He says, “you’ll lose your life because you’re not listening to my communication to you. In other words, my mind is darkened—my emotions are distorted—and my will is deadened, unless they are controlled by the indwelling, penetrating, and permanent presence of the life giver king. And, He’s saying, that I can be perverted in my pursuits, and end up with pathetic production, and have a poor program, become a pretending practitioner, all while I’m listening to some pitiful preacher.
{Please don’t go to sleep on me! I won’t be long!}
But He says, in the text, that “[If I love my own life, I’ll lose it]”. But He also says, “If I hate…” And that word “hate,” carries a minimum of emotion in it, if any at all. It really carries the idea of disregarding my own mind-set. It carries the idea of not making first choice, of what I think about a situation. Said “[If I will just hate my own life]…then I will keep it unto life eternal,” (i.e., God’s quality of life: attractive life; authentic life). Life is filled, as somebody has said, with illusions, and previsions, and distortions. But when ever Jesus speaks, He brushes away the illusions of life; lets us focus in on what life is really all about. He says Christian Bible College, if you really want to live life, let me tell you how to do it. “If any man…” black or white, oriental or occidental, hawk or dove, liberal or conservative, republican or democrat, doesn’t matter; “ANY MAN…!” “Any man… [if he will] follow me!”
Now the question then comes bouncing off the table, what does it mean to follow Him? Whatever else it means it means at least two things. It means to “RECEIVE HIM AS SAVIOR” and then to “RESPOND TO HIM AS SOVEREIGN.” Because, it is literally impossible to follow Him and say, “Not So Lord.”
{Somebody ought to help me preach this today!}
As we approach the resurrection season! Do you remember that donkey, that colt that Jesus rode into town? Here’s what He said to the fellows around Him, He said, “run into town and tell the “owner of the colt that the Lord hath need of him.” That word “Lord,” (kurios), you know Iēsous Christos Kurios. But “Kurios” owner, boss, the one in charge. He said, go in and tell the owner, (same word), that the owner of the owner wants the colt. Which means, He’s got other options: He can take the colt, or He can take the owner and leave the colt.
{Wake-up that person right next to you!}
He said, if you really want authentic and attractive life, then, “Follow me.” And the tenor and the tone and the tension of the text suggests all kinds of things, but essentially, its follow Him as a student. In other words, “Take my yoke upon you and learn of me.” And if you learn of me, then can you follow me, not only in salvation, not only in school, but the text says, “In service.” “[If any man follows me, then let him serve me]…and if any man serves me, him will my Father honor.”
So, if there is anybody here today, who wants to be on the Father’s honor-roll…? Though we may never make an honor-roll down here… Our names may never be in lights down here; but, the text says, “If [I] serve Him,” I can be on the Father’s honor-roll.
{Do I have a witness anywhere in here?}
And when the Father says, well done! I ought to tell you parenthetically speaking, the only one that He’s ever going to say well done to—is the one that does well. In other words He can’t say well done—until I well do. And if I well do; in following Him—I don’t have to sit around and synergistically deduce, come up with a new programmatic thrust—just follow His teachings—and continue in His works.
And then, when I hear the steady march of the chariot wheels from the sky!
When my light goes out like a vessel not filled with oil!
And when my voice is hushed like a flickering candle in the wind!
And when my remains are placed deep down in the couch of nature’s night!
To wait for the dawn of eternity’s awakening, it will all be worth it, when I hear Him say, “WELL DONE!”
If I just make it onto the Father’s honor-roll!
OH! – You know who changed my life? …The one who had more medicine in the hem of His garment than all the drug stores in town.
He’s an ANSWER for my AGONY!
He’s a BALM for my BRUSES!
He’s a CURE for my CALAMITY!
He’s a DELIVERER for my DISTRESS!
He’s an ERASER for my ERROR!
OH! He’s the FIXER of my FAULTS!
The HEALER of my HURTS!
And he IDENTIFIES with my INFIRMITIES!
And that’s why nobody will ever take his place with me!
It’s Jesus in the morning! Jesus at high noon! And Jesus when the sun goes down!