I Want To See Jesus

Good morning everyone! It is such a blessing to see all of your shining faces here today! I know that there are still several of us out because of continued illnesses and complications and for that very reason, I want to ask you all to take a moment with me right now, as we lift up our brothers and sisters in Christ in prayer for their healing and for strength in the midst of such trying times!

LEAD OUT IN PRAYER!

Today, as most of you are aware of, is the day that many people in this nation celebrate, known as the day of Halloween, right?

Well, let me go ahead and say right out of the gait, that my message today is not based upon, nor has it any dealings with this particular date and seasonal event that many partake of called Halloween.

I did in fact, deliver a message to everyone here two years ago at this same time of the year, a three part message to be exact, entitled, “Things That Go Bump In The Night”.

And within those messages, I talked quite extensively about the subject of fear and the unholy fascination that many people in this nation and around the world have with the subject of fear and with this one particular day of the year and all that goes with it.

If you were here and if you heard that message, you might remember that I had my sister here with us and she shared her testimony to you all, as to the time and season in her life that she spent involved with WICCA and of her fascination with the occultic and with horror movies and the macabre.

She also shared of her repenting of her past life and giving her life to our great Lord and Savior, Yeshua, and of how all of those things are no longer a part of her “new” life in Christ! She turned from the darkness to the light!

So, all of that said, I simply want to share with you all again, that if you are one of those who have an estranged fascination with the horror movies and the macabre and you are of the mind set that they are just movies and they are just books and TV shows and that they are only for entertainment purposes and nothing more and nothing bad is coming out of them, you are horribly wrong and deceived!

The Bible clearly shows us that there are only two kingdoms that we can dwell within. You are either a resident in the kingdom of God, which is the kingdom of Light, or you are a resident within the kingdom of darkness.

That’s it....those two places of residency are all there are in this life!

Colossians 1:12-14 tells us, “Giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in LIGHT. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

So, you are a resident of only one of two existing kingdoms. There are no other options!

You are either a resident in the kingdom of light and as such, you live your life abiding by the laws of the King of this glorious kingdom and of the TRUTH of His words and according to His ways, OR........

You’re living as a citizen of the kingdom of darkness and thus you live your life according to the god of this world and his lies and his deception!

One or the other. There is no middle ground!

And so, if you’re fascinated with and dabble in the things that are evil and demonic, like horror movies and things that depict occultic practices, regardless of how innocent you think they are, you’re glorifying the god of this world and his kingdom of darkness!

The Word of God says in Ephesians 5:11, “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.”

And then again in 1 Corinthians 10:31 Paul says, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”

So, how can you even begin to think that watching things that are of the darkness and that glorify darkness, bring glory to God?

You can only serve one master! And regardless of what you say and do openly within the church buildings, your actions done in private, dictate what is really in your heart!

As one saying goes, “The two things that show the true treasure of your heart are, 1) Where you spend your time and 2) Where you spend your money!”

You’re either glorifying the Lord God, the ONE TRUE GOD, with these things, or you’re glorifying satan and his kingdom through them!

So, the only times that you and I are to ever have any affiliation with the deeds of darkness, is when we are speaking of these things with others, in order to expose the deceptive deeds of darkness and thus bring the glorious light of the Gospel message into their existence and with the hope of salvation and deliverance from those things, for those people who are engaging in such things!

The ONLY ghost that you and I ever need to read about and have any affiliation with, is the Holy Ghost of God almighty........period!

IS EVERYONE CLEAR ABOUT THIS? IF YOU FEEL OTHERWISE, PLEASE REACH OUT TO ME AND WE CAN SET UP A TIME TO SIT DOWN AND DISCUSS THIS, BASED UPON THE WORD OF GOD AND WHAT IT SAYS TO US FOR OUR LIVES!!

AMEN?!!!!!!!

Now, if you have your Bibles this morning, please turn with me to the gospel of John. John 12:20-26.

John 12:20–26 ESV

20 Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. 21 So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. 23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 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. 25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 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.

Within this passage, we are now at the last week in the life of Yeshua as far as a timeline goes.

Our Lord has just completed His triumphant entry into Jersualem and the crowds have just finished hailing Him as the messianic king of prophesy, who was going to deliver them from Roman rule and establish His kingdom in Jerusalem and forever liberate their people!

Or, at least that’s the way they believed His coming was going to be!!

And this was the time of the Passover Feast, which was one of the three feasts, or festivals, that all Jewish men were expected to attend in Jerusalem. (The required feasts of attendance for the Jews were: The Passover, Feast of Weeks and Feast of Tabernacles.)

That being said, we are talking about thousands and thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people making the journey to Jersualem for this feast!

And out of those who were traveling to Jerusalem for the Passover there were both Jews who were going early for the process of ceremonial cleansing, according to the Law, so that they could participate in the feast, as well large numbers of Gentiles who were making their way to the holy city for the feast also!

And out of the myriads of people who were showing up for this great annual feast, both sides had a common interest that the Bible shows us in John’s gospel............both Jews and Gentiles alike were wanting to see Jesus!

John 11:55-56 says, “Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and many went up from the country to Jerusalem before the Passover to purify themselves. They were looking for Jesus and saying to one another as they stood in the temple, “What do you think? That he will not come to the feast at all?”

And when you look closely at our passage for today in John 12:20-21 we read in detail, “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.”

John alone, records for us this detail about the Greeks seeking Jesus, in his gospel record.

The question is, “WHY?” Why was it important that he mention some Greeks, some GENTILES, coming and seeking Jesus in this passage?

And just as curious and peculiar is the answer that Yeshua gives once approached about the matter! (More about that in a minute.)

Why were the Greeks seeking Yeshua to begin with?

The fact that these Greeks were going to Jerusalem to worship at the Passover Feast, tells us something about them.

They were most likely proselytes, that is, someone who had converted from one faith to another.

In this case, they were Greeks, who had come from a pagan pantheistic religious background and had been converted to Judaism and as such, they were coming to worship the one true God, Yahweh, like the Jewish nation had taught them.

As to why they were specifically seeking Yeshua in this gospel account, is speculation, because John doesn’t record for us all of the details.

Maybe they had witnessed Jesus at some earlier point in His earthly ministry.

John tells us that they went specifically to Philip and made their petition to him.

Philip was from the town of Bethsaida, which was an area closer to the region of the Decapolis, a large predominately gentile region across the Sea of Galilee.

And if they were possibly from that region, then they would have very possibly witnessed the miracle of our Lord feeding the “four thousand” that he did in that gentile region, which of course mirrored His miracle of feeding the “five thousand” in the predominately Jewish region.

And since Philip had a Greek name, as did Andrew, they may have felt drawn to ask him about meeting with Yeshua. (A kind of neutral ground, or common thread if you will.)

And maybe also, these Greek converts had been in with the crowds as Yeshua made His triumphant entry into Jerusalem and the witnessed how everyone was praising Him!

They would have heard others questioning in the crowds about who this “Jesus” was and of how others were still answering and declaring, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.”

And maybe also they were in the outer court of the temple of Jerusalem, the Court of Gentiles, the day of the triumphant entry, when Yeshua turned over the tables and drove out the money changers.

And they would have stood and marveled at His power and authority, as He challenged the Jewish system in the face of the Sanhedrin and their guards.

But ultimately, it is speculation as to why we find them approaching Philip that day and asking to meet with the Lord.

And the verbiage that John records that they used, was of a more determined and strong nature than just a simple, curios request.

The words they used show an intent of the will and a firm resolve to do something.

What they were really saying to Philip in the Greek was, “Sir, we intend to meet with Yeshua. One way or another!”

And instead of taking them to meet with Jesus, Philip then turns and goes to Andrew about the matter! And then Andrew and Philip, BOTH, went to Jesus and presented the Greeks request.

The reason that Philip may have went to Andrew first versus going directly to Yeshua, was possibly because he remembered what Yeshua had instructed them earlier in His ministry, when He sent the twelve disciples out on their own.

Jesus instructed them to NOT go into any Gentile regions, but only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And because of this, maybe he and Andrew were both unsure about how to present this before the Lord.

Regardless of how and why it happened the way that it did (which John did not feel led to elaborate on for the reader), the Lord Yeshua made it clear as to what His intentions were, from that point on.

John does not record for us any further details as to what happened about the Greeks and their desire to “see” Jesus. Instead, John shares with us what the Lord said in response to their request and moves forward.

You have to understand what is happening all at once in this gospel account. Yeshua is now in the last week of His earthly ministry before going to the cross and as He is being brought into Jerusalem before the large crowds, there exists now, both the Jewish and Gentile nations who are there and who are desiring to “see Jesus”!

This fact being brought up and emphasized and validated by the religious zealots themselves, the Pharisees, where we find them saying in verse 19 of John 12, “You see that you are not doing any good; look, the world has gone after Him.”

They were witnessing the truth of what was taking place and of what was yet to come. Despite their attempts to contain this Yeshua and His message, people from all races and tribes and tongues, would ULTIMATELY come and desire to “SEE JESUS”!

And the reasons that people were and would continually be drawn to want to see Him, varied...........just as they still are today.

John tells us earlier in chapter 12, that there were those present that day during Yeshua’s triumphant entry, who had been with Him the day that He raised Lazarus from the grave.

And because of this, these witnesses were going around and telling others in the crowd about this great miracle and creating an even greater desire and longing for people to want to get to “see Jesus”!

You see, there were people back then, during the earthly life of Yeshua, who were desiring to see and hear Him, Jews and Gentiles alike, because they believed in who He was, or at least they had the faith to accept that He was definitely sent from God.

And because of that faith and belief, they desired to “see” Him and be around Him and even get to touch Him!

And still, there were those who had of heard or even witnessed His amazing miracles and desired to “see” Him, because they were enamored by those miracles and signs and wonders!

These people were drawn to what He could do to bedazzle them and what He could provide for them, but their hearts were never really with Him.

And thus, these same people, when the atmosphere shifted and the crowds had begun changing their decrees from hailing Yeshua as King and messiah, to the shouts of, “Crucify Him, crucify Him”, they joined in with that mentality also, because their desire was not truly to “see” Jesus for who and what He was truly was, but only for what He could do to entertain and appease them.

Even if that entertainment involved this innocent Son of God being brutally murdered on a Roman cross, as many of them watched and witnessed!

The point being, even the signs and wonders performed by the Lord Yeshua Himself, were not enough to convince people of who and what He truly was and still is.

John records for us this same thing verse 37 of our chapter this morning, where he writes, “But though He had performed so many signs before them, yet they were not believing in Him.”

There were then and there still are today, people who long to “see” Jesus through the lens of His signs and wonders, because they need a physical manifestation of something to try and validate for them that He is who He says that He is and who the Bible says that He is!

And that’s great if someone is an un-believer and doesn’t truly know Him.

Those signs and wonders and miracles have definitely turned many blinded eyes towards Him, and thus allowed the truth of the gospel message to begin to permeate their hearts, by the drawing and unction of Holy Spirit working on them and in them!

But as a believer in Yeshua, you shouldn’t NEED to “see” anything as proof of His existence to validate your faith.

The apostle Paul said that we “Walk by faith and not by sight. For in this hope we were saved; but hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he can already see? So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

And as the author of Hebrews wrote, “Now faith is the assurance of what we hope for and the certainty of what we do not see!”

And my point in saying all of this about the miracles and the signs and wonders is this.

People have always wanted and even demanded signs and wonders from the Lord, as proof for their hearts about who and what He is and what He says.

The religious leaders of His day demanded signs from Him to prove His claims and you know what He said to them in response to their requests, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign”!

Signs and wonders are amazing gifts of Holy Spirit, through the will of God, that definitely serve to encourage, both the heart of a believer, as well as to draw the attention of the un-believer towards Him!

BUT, they are not where our hearts and our desires are to reside as children of God.

Even the enemy can produce and will more so, in these last days, produce signs and wonders. that will deceive many into believing in him, versus truly believing in God!

Be careful in your hearts that when you desire to “see Jesus” through signs and wonders, that its not because you truly do not have faith in who He is and ultimately because you need the “physical” manifestation to validate Him in your heart and mind!

Remember what Yeshua said to Thomas in John 20:29, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

If you do not truly believe in Him in your heart after hearing the full gospel message and your faith is not in Him to truly be the Lord of your life, then seeing a sign, miracle, may make you feel closer to Him for a short period, but in the end, you will be right back to where you were before and needing more proof!

True saving SALVATION is through the gift of FAITH in Christ alone by God and not from anything else.

Signs and wonders and miracles are truly gifts of God here on earth and we should be thankful to Him when we witness them!

But our FAITH in Him is NEVER to be swayed or changed by the presence or the absence of those miracles!

Faith in God through Christ, is just that. It is FAITH in Him and who HE is to us. Not what He needs to do for us to validate our faith in Him!

He has already done EVERYTHING that is needed to prove to us who and what He is!

And back to the Greeks in John’s gospel who wanted to “see Jesus”. Some wanted to “see Jesus” in person because of what they had both seen and heard and they were curious, and still others wanted to “see Jesus” because they believed in who and what He was and they wanted to be in His presence!!

David, in the Old Testament, never physically witnessed the Lord, and yet his total life’s desire, was to be “in the presence of the Lord”. He said in Psalm 51:11 , “Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.” And again in another psalm, David said, “In your presence is fullness of joy. Let my judgement come forth from your presence!”

David believed in God and had faith in his heart in who God was and truly is. To David, “seeing God” was the same as being in His presence and witnessing His creation, as David declared, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.”

Seeing the works of God is to truly to “see” God through those works. Everything about creation is truly a miracle. The way that our universe and this earth are held together in space, the majesty and splendor of the human body and how we are made, are nothing short of MIRACLES that we are to behold each and every day of our lives here on earth as physical proof of God in our midsts! Creation itself is a miracle, but it pails in comparison to the miracle of the resurrection and that of a reborn life!

If we want to “see Jesus” through the lens of His miracles, then aspire for the greatest miracle of all, and devote yourself to leading others to Yeshua!

You truly “see Jesus” when you see someone who is lost being found and forgiven and set free from the chains of sin and corruption and as you witness true spiritual re-birth! That is, you and I get to “see Jesus”, whenever we “see” someone reborn through Him!

We “see” Jesus through His Holy Spirit in us and in His Words that He gave to us. As we read His Words, they are brought into display in our minds through the work of the Holy Spirit.

And just like a master painter, He paints a work of art on the canvas of our minds which comes from those precious words and promises of the Lord!

Like the Greeks, do you long to “see Jesus”? Do you see Him even now, in your life each and every day?

Next week, we are going to take a deeper look at the subject of desiring to “SEE JESUS” and what all that truly entails and means for us!