Can You See the Light?

John 12:12–50 ESV

The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written, “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!” His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him. The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign. So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.” 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. “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine. Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. So the crowd answered him, “We have heard from the Law that the Christ remains forever. How can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?” So Jesus said to them, “The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” When Jesus had said these things, he departed and hid himself from them. Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him, so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: “Lord, who has believed what he heard from us, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said, “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them.” Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him. Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God. And Jesus cried out and said, “Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me. And whoever sees me sees him who sent me. I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness. If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day. For I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak. And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me.”

Scripture: John 12:12-50

Sermon Title: Can You See the Light?

           We’re beginning a new series this morning that is going to take us through Easter, and it’s entitled “The Hour Has Come.” We’re going to be making our way through the second half of the Gospel of John, where we find the events of the final week of Jesus’ life leading up to his crucifixion and resurrection. The series’ title isn’t just talking about a countdown-type of thing, that we’re chipping away at different events and lessons before arriving at the main events in chapters 19 and 20, but rather it comes out of several phrases that we find in the book of John

           Throughout the first eleven chapters, we find two words brought up among four passages in chapters 2, 7, and 8—that Jesus’ “time” or “hour” “had not yet come.” You can see them on the screen. When his mother Mary told him the wine had run out at the wedding at Cana, that was his response. When his brothers tried to get him to go to Jerusalem for the feast, he told them any time was good for them, but it was not his time yet. When he was teaching in Jerusalem and his life was being threatened, twice we read no one could seize him or even lay a hand on him for this reason. We’re starting the series in chapter 12, because we read in verse 23, “…‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified…’” and in verse 27, “‘…It was for this very reason I came to this hour…’” Even though it’s not Palm Sunday today, we do begin with the events of “the triumphal entry,” which took place heading into the celebration of the Jewish Passover.

           Brothers and sisters in Christ, what is the greatest thing that has ever happened to you? What’s the most exciting thing, the most life-changing thing, an experience that you had and came away from, saying, “I’ve got to tell somebody,” “I’ve got to call someone. They gotta know!”? If you’re married or if you have kids, hopefully the day you got married or you held your baby for the first time ranks pretty high on that list. Those can be overwhelming days—the events, the emotions, the adrenaline, and joy. It’s usually not an exaggeration to say, “I will never forget it.”

For a lot of people in the world today, though—and maybe it came to mind for some of us, the greatest thing imaginable is meeting someone famous, someone who we admire, some powerful or influential leader, or, mainly for young people, meeting some social media influencer. People will pay money and stand in line for hours to get an autograph or a picture and maybe a 30 to 60-second conversation with a person they’ve seen on screen or heard their music or speeches. While moments like that can seem like the greatest moment for an average person, the famous person will likely forget who we are and whatever we said to them a short time later.

The way John brings us into Jesus’ Passion Week has some of those elements. Jesus had been ministering publicly for a few years, mostly out in the country where he became well-known and word spread about him. But now he had come to Jerusalem; he came to the big city, and was flocked by people. He was celebrated, if not worshiped. The triumphal entry wasn’t a small party; we heard the Pharisees describe it by saying, “‘…Look how the whole world has gone after him!’” Four times in this passage we read of “the crowd” being around him. People couldn’t get enough of Jesus, and not just Jewish people, but Greeks—Gentiles, were trying to meet him, too.

Yet as exciting and maybe successful in ministry terms all this might seem, verses 18 and 37 clue us in to what a lot of people were actually here for: “Many people, because they had heard that he had given this miraculous sign [resurrecting Lazarus], went out to meet him,” and, “Even after Jesus had done all these miraculous signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him.” To be clear, there were people in Jerusalem and in this crowd who truly believed in Jesus for who he is, but many did not. Evidently quite a number of them were simply hoping to get a meet and greet with the famous, incredible, miracle-worker Jesus, or to see him actually do a miracle, perform the impossible, so they could go back to wherever they were from, and tell people how cool it was to see him.

But Jesus’ signs and miracles were not the most important thing. Simply getting some facetime with him was not the greatest thing he had to offer. The greatest thing Jesus came for was to save sinners, and to accomplish that by his death. We see this starting to shape up in verses 23 and 24. Jesus said, “…‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds…’” He goes on to tell this group in verse 32, “‘…But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.’” John tells us, “He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die,” and it appears from the very next verse that the crowd may have even realized he was talking about dying. That didn’t fit what they expected of their Messiah.

           We’ll get to the saving part in just a moment, but think about Jesus saying all this when and where he did. Israel was entering into Passover, the origin of which was God calling his people to kill a lamb and put its blood on the doorframes of their homes, so the angel of death would see that and pass over them while taking the firstborn of those who didn’t have the blood. Every year, they were supposed to remember and celebrate God, the LORD God who brought them out of Egypt, the land of slavery. Here Jesus comes, talking about himself as one who dies for many others to have life. This is not how normal people talk. Yet Jesus wasn’t any normal person. They hadn’t wrapped their minds around who he really was.

That brings us back to the first part of this point: the greatest thing Jesus came for was to save sinners—that is what his death accomplished. We find in verses 47 through 50, “‘…For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day.” Let’s be clear: Jesus didn’t teach universalism, that absolutely all people will be saved to heaven, that hell isn’t real, that it isn’t a place of eternal condemnation and punishment. No, those who reject Jesus Christ, who do not believe and repent of their sin, are facing that reality. But what Jesus came to preach and to accomplish is salvation for all who will listen and believe in him and in his work. He continues there, “I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. I know that his command leads to eternal life…’”

Jesus is the Savior, the only Savior, and this wasn’t the first time in his ministry that he revealed that. John is the same Gospel book in which we read the familiar words, “‘For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son…’” It's the same book, where we find in chapter 10, Jesus identifying himself as “the good shepherd,” and saying, “…‘I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.’” 

When we read Scripture, the necessity of faith unto salvation is abundantly clear. We must believe in God, in the One who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. There is no other name to confess and be saved. But salvation isn’t at all about our work; it is wholly and only about Jesus our Savior. The one who has saved us and all who turn to him; he saves us out of our unrighteousness, out of our sin, out of the mess we’ve gotten ourselves into. He says, “Come to me, come in the gate, and find rest, find redemption, find eternal life” that he offers

Before we move on to our other point this morning, I invite us to join in two questions and answers from the Heidelberg Catechism. I’ll read the question, if you would please join on the answer. We addressed a couple weeks back how Christ paid for our sins, he earned our salvation. Question and Answer 43, “What further benefit do we receive from Christ’s sacrifice and death on the cross? By Christ’s power our old selves are crucified, put to death, and buried with him, so that the evil desires of the flesh may no longer rule us, but that instead we may offer ourselves as a sacrifice of gratitude to him.” And 52, “How does Christ’s return ‘to judge the living and the dead’ comfort you? In all distress and persecution, with uplifted head, I confidently await the very judge who has already offered himself to the judgment of God in my place and removed the whole curse from me. Christ will cast all his enemies and mine into everlasting condemnation, but will take me and all his chosen ones to himself into the joy and glory of heaven.” Christ promises us that. He promises all who seek after him that hope of eternal life. He died that we don’t have to die eternally.

Let’s turn then to our other point: seek the light of Jesus. As Jesus was foreshadowing his own death, which was just days away, he put before his disciples, his followers, the crowd, and even his enemies that might have been listening in, the imagery of light and darkness. In verses 35 and 36, he talked about how the light was soon going away, and then he commanded them, “‘…Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. The man who walks in the dark does not know where he is going. Put your trust in the light while you have it, so that you may become sons of light.” He returned to that image in verse 46, “‘…I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.’”

This isn’t the only place light shows up in the Gospel of John in reference to Jesus. We find it repeatedly in chapters 1 and 3, and then again in chapters 8, 9, and 11. Each time it captures really the same message. Jesus is the light. He shines in a world of darkness. He’s the only true source for light, and those who have him will be able to see while others remain in the darkness without him. Yet it’s clear, we shouldn’t be waiting for the light to get dim or begin to flicker before we seek him.

We all know how different lights with different strengths and different amounts of power work. If I have a little pen flashlight that runs off a small battery, it’s probably not going to show me much. I might be able to put it in a small space where it’s contained, and be able to see detail. But I’m not going to go out in the woods or out on a frozen lake a mile or more from shore and rely only on that light to find a clear path. If you’re in this building at night, and you’re in a hallway where the only light might be the glow of the “Exit” signs, you have an idea of where to go, but it can be difficult to navigate if anything is in your way. But if you come out into the fellowship hall where outside light shines through the windows, it’s still a little tough, but it’s much easier to navigate even with tables and chairs. So too, a high-power flashlight or headlights on a vehicle are going to show you where to go and what to avoid much more than a small light bulb.

So, when Jesus connects faith to being in the light, and tells us to, “Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you,” he’s calling us to go to him and stay with him, to love and obey him, to abide with him. There may be other temporary lights that we try to use to navigate our way in this life, but if they are not God, eventually they will fade. Without Christ, there will only be darkness. A person will be lost.

So, brothers and sisters, can you see the light? I included this picture from the Glow Holiday Festival that was hosted at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds from late November to early January. There were millions of Christmas lights and different exhibits made out of them, but this area stuck in my head. It’s a small forest of lit-up trees, and it was almost blinding as you walked among them. Maybe you can see on the picture, if there wasn’t snow on the ground, you could see the colors of the green grass and yellowed leaves even though it was night out. You could see peoples faces as if the sun was out or you were inside with the lights on; it was that bright. But when you walk away it got dark again, you couldn’t see things so clearly, so colorfully.

That was a fun experience, at least for my family—I wasn’t feeling great the night we went, but by no means was it the greatest event or thing in my life. What I hope each of us could genuinely answer that question I opened with, is the greatest moment, the greatest part of our lives is knowing Jesus. It’s being able to stand before God, before believers, and before anyone, and make the kind of profession we heard earlier from the Wiinamakis: Jesus is my Lord and Savior, he is the Christ and he is my Redeemer. I know that and I believe that because the Bible tells me so. And I want others to see him and know him, too. If we believe, if we are in his light, nothing else is greater.   

Is Jesus shining brightly in your life? Do you find comfort and joy in him despite the darkness, the troubles and struggles, the things of this world trying to pull you away? Or is he a flicker that’s far away? Do you need someone else who is a child of the light, who sees clearly, to help bring you back? Young people and children, look to a parent, teacher, someone who’s discipled or prayed for you. Adults, ask a friend, a family member, a pastor or elder, a person who’s held you accountable. The light of Christ is the good news that he does save sinners, that he does have a yet to be finished plan in this world. There is hope, but we have to seek after him.

If Christ has shown you his light and you have faith, no matter how dim that light may feel or seem, return, and remain with it, with him. We should take those words directed to the prophet Isaiah referenced in verse 40 seriously—there are people blinded, deadened in their hearts, not understanding or turning to God.  Don’t be hardened toward God. Don’t reject him. Don’t see where his light is and decide you should try a different way. Seek him as directly as possible, following the path he shines for us. As you go, as you are helped by other Christians, may you also help others to see the light all the more themselves. Amen.