March 26, 2023 John 12:20-33 “Entrance to New Life!”

24 Mar March 26, 2023 John 12:20-33 “Entrance to New Life!”

March 26, 2023   John 12:20-33      “Entrance to New Life!”

One of the things that our society is so good at is explaining things.  Just look about you right now and you could probably explain a lot of the objects.  We have steel that goes into many things.  There is plastic that is everywhere and it’s a little harder to explain.  Maybe you have a plant and you can explain that.  We can even explain where babies come from.  Just about everything you have can have some sort of explanation and it would probably be close to being right.  But there are things that just cannot be explained.  How can I explain how I was suddenly cured of gall bladder problems after months of pain and agony?  I’m sure that you have things in your life that just cannot be explained.  We all do.  Today, we have revival happening in many places.  Suddenly, people are flocking to places like here, where they can find Jesus.  Most of the time they don’t even know what they are looking for.  It cannot be explained.  Suddenly, people are coming to Jesus in large numbers.  Their lives are so miserable that they are looking for a way out.  Plus, Jesus is calling to them.  But this cannot be explained in any type of scientific way.  It is just happening and there is no explanation.  Today, we are going to look at how Jesus can affect your life for the better.  Jesus always works to better our lives and that is a promise.

Here’s an interesting story told by Darren Ethier.  In 1858 a Sunday School teacher, Mr. Kimball, led a Boston shoe clerk to give his life to Jesus Christ. The clerk was Dwight L. Moody who became an evangelist. In 1879 while Moody was preaching in England the heart of a pastor named F.B. Meyer was set on fire, who later came to an American college campus to preach. Under his preaching a student by the name of Wilbur Chapman was saved. He engaged in YMCA work and employed a former baseball player named Billy Sunday, to do evangelistic work. Billy Sunday held a revival in Charlotte, North Carolina. Because the revival stirred the hearts of many, some 30 business men wanted to devote a day of prayer for Charlotte. In May of 1934 a farmer lent the men some land to use for their prayer meeting. The leader of the business men, Vernon Patterson prayed, “Out of Charlotte the Lord would raise up someone to preach the Gospel to the ends of the earth.” The business men then called for another evangelistic meeting asking Mordecai Ham, a fiery Southern evangelist who shattered the complacency of church-going Charlotte. The farmer who lent his land for the prayer meeting was Franklin Graham and his son Billy became a Christian during the meeting.  Fantastic chain of events that have led to wondrous results.  This is just one small way that God orchestrates the events around us.

As we begin with our reading, we find that there were some Greeks who went up to worship at the Feast.  We think that this is probably the Feast of the Passover.  It seems rather strange that a group of Gentiles, Greeks, would do this.  Therefore, we need almost assume that these Greeks were converts or somehow linked to the Jewish religion.  We also have to assume that they knew something about Judaism and Christianity.  Otherwise, there would be no reason for them to be there.  There would be no reason to be curious.  This would be something like today if a group of us were to go and celebrate the Passover with our Jewish friends.  We could do it and we would be welcome to a certain extent.  It would just be a little strange for all of us.

Anyway, they come to Philip and ask, “Sir, we would like to see Jesus.”  This is very important.  They wanted to see Jesus.  They wanted to see the person who was responsible for turning people’s lives upside down for the better.  They wanted to see the man who could heal by just touching or even looking at the person.  They wanted to see the person who was far wiser than all of the sages of the times.  We don’t know why they wanted to see Jesus but only that they wanted to see Jesus.

This brings us to our world today.  John tells us in another place that we were all made to have Jesus inside of us.  Every person in the world is made this way.  Therefore, we were or are all made wanting to see Jesus.  Now, Satan has clouded our world to the point where we don’t know that we want to see Jesus anymore.  Many people feel that they are far better off going it on their own than with Jesus.  However, no matter what Satan does, he cannot quench our curiosities enough so that we do not try to see Jesus.

There are several places in this country where we have been witnessing revival.  It is my prayer that this will continue until everyone has a chance to come to satisfy their curiosity and come to know Jesus.  Thousands of people came to Asbury Seminary in Kentucky to see Jesus.  There were interviews asking people why they were coming.  So many people could not tell us why they were there.  They could only say that they had a feeling, a desire to come and see Jesus.  And that is what they did.  And it is happening in other parts of the country also.  When Jesus is present, people listen and pay attention.

I think that it is really hard for us to realize who Jesus is because we cannot see Him.  We don’t know the color of skin, the color of His eyes, His height, weight or anything about Him physically.  And we live in a world of visual stimulation.  It is pretty much a national motto that seeing is believing.   This may be one of the reasons there is getting to be so few Christians in this country.  We don’t see so we don’t believe!

Anyway, I’m going to try to show you the way to see Jesus and His greatness.  I would like you to just look around yourself for a moment.  Are there any plants around?  Jesus made those.  Do you have a family?  Jesus is in them and the whole concept of family.  How about your neighbors?  Jesus is in their lives also.  How about the food you eat today?  What I’m trying to say here is that Jesus is everywhere.  There is no place that you can look that you won’t see Jesus.  That is why these revivals are working so well.  Jesus is there and people are seeing Him.

So, if you go to a church where you know Jesus is present, then tell other people about it.  Tell them that Jesus is in the pastor and the music.  Tell them that Jesus is always there and He is looking for more people.  This is the surest way to grow a church.  If you feel that Jesus is present in this broadcast, then tell people about it.  Learn to talk about Jesus in all the things and places you go.  People are hungry for Jesus just like these ancient Greeks.

Then Jesus starts to talk and He seemingly doesn’t pay any attention to these new comers.  But then again, maybe He does.  Maybe they need to hear what He has to say.  This is taking place right before the crucifixion.  Jesus is telling them that He must die.  That is part of the message of the kernel of wheat.  In order for the plan to be brought to the next step, Jesus must die.  And like a kernel of wheat which has already died, when it goes into the ground, it begins a new life.

I have used this part of the passage for many of the funerals I have done.  Whether we like it or not, we will all die to this world.  We do not get to live here forever.  When we die, then our children may take over where we left off.  This could be the obvious part of this reading.  But it also tells us that we will all die and those of us who know Jesus will get to continue a new life in heaven.  It really doesn’t matter because either way, our job isn’t over when we die.  We will either have descendants to carry on here and/or we will carry on in heaven.  Plus, if we are following Jesus, then honor will come to us as we serve Jesus.  This is a promise.  This is the love that God has for each of us.

It is almost as if Jesus is having a little conversation with Himself because there is no one close to him that understands what He means.  He gives us a little preview of what will come next.  He tells us that His heart is troubled and I would guess that there are many reasons for this.  But one of those reasons is not that He is going to die very shortly.  No!  He came to this world to die just like all of us.  What He wants to do here is glorify the name of the Father.  He is troubled by all that He has seen in this world.  Their world was just as unjust, corrupt and sinful as it is today.  And that, my brothers and sisters in Christ, is very sad.

But suddenly, there is a voice coming from heaven saying, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.”  This is the voice of God talking to His people.  Notice that some people hear what the voice is and others say it was thunder.   No one knows but I would say that the believers or those inclined to believe heard the voice of God while those with hardened hearts heard it as thunder.

I read a good illustration of what this was like.  For those of you who are old enough, you will know exactly what I mean.  Back in my younger years, it would often be hard to tune in a radio station and also some TV stations.  You had to have an antenna plus you had to be in the right position and maybe you could get some reception.  Many times, the reception was fuzzy or snowy on TV.  You could barely make out the message.  This was the voice of God that day.  For those inclined to believe, it was clear and those who wouldn’t believe, the Pharisees, wouldn’t hear.  I think that this is how it would work in a public setting.  God does not talk to often to groups of people in public.

It is totally different when you are by yourself.  God is talking to you all the time or at least quite a bit of the time.  Do you hear Him?  Usually, it takes some time and training to be able to hear God but He is there and talking to you.  Most of this I will say that it usually happens this way but with God it can happen any which way He wants.  That’s the beauty of God.  The first thing you need to do in order to hear God is to slow down.  Satan has got you going from sunup to sunset doing things that are not important.  Just take an inventory of your life or a day in your life and you will see what I mean.  Slow down and go into your prayer time at a slow pace.  Then you need to ask God for whatever.  Always be specific when you ask.  James tells us that you do not have because you do not ask.  Then be aware, be alert for thoughts that come into your mind regarding the question.  This is how God talks to me.  I know that it comes from God because I know that I could never think of such things.  He has solved many problems for me and He will for you also.  Just learn to listen.

So, what does all this mean to us?  All of us want to see Jesus and those of us who see Him, want to see even more of Him.  We realize that we are like a kernel of wheat that seemingly died when the plant died but later came to life as the kernel hit the ground.  We also realize that Jesus came to this world for many reasons but the main one was to die for our sins, your sins today.

A little boy learned a valuable lesson in this from David Simpson.  It seems he had a brand-new BB gun.  He took it out behind the house and aimed at a little bird and pulled the trigger.  As luck would have it, he hit it and killed the bird.  At first, he was excited that he hit the bird.  Then it dawned on him what had happened.  He said to his dad, “Is he dead?”  “Yes, son,” the dad replied.  “Dad, bring him back.”  “Son, there is nothing I can do.”  Now, that was a lesson to learn, but the dad wasn’t done yet.

I forgot to mention that this dad was also a pastor.  Thinking as what to do in this situation, he did the only thing that would come natural.  He decided they would have a funeral for this bird.  By doing this, he might teach the boy who is our greatest help in the time of need.  So, they got a shoebox, dug a hole, had a little service and said a prayer.  You see…there is only one who has the answer to death. There is only one who has truly conquered death forever. There is only one who defeated death and gave us hope in our most difficult hour…and that’s our Savior Jesus!  That’s why Easter is such a glorious occasion! It is the celebration of Jesus’ defeat of our greatest enemy – death. Without Jesus, death is the end. Because of Jesus, death is merely a threshold, an entrance to a new life.

This is what this whole passage is all about.  You need Jesus to get to heaven.  Remember that the only way to God is through Jesus.  He came and taught us a lot about life.  He also came so that He could die for your sins, 2000 years later.  That, my friends, is power.  Also remember that there is no life without Jesus, only existence.  Jesus is holding His arms out to you right now.  If you have never confessed to Him, then do it now.  Then ask Him to be the Lord and Savior of your life.  You will never, never regret it.  And thank you, Jesus, for first loving us.  Let’s pray.