Lift High the Name of Jesus - John 12:27-36
No matter how tempting that hotdog at a Major League Baseball game might look, it’s never worth it. How can I say that? Because no hotdog on the face of the earth is worth $47. I’m exaggerating a bit, but not by much!
Once you're locked into a sporting event we all know that the concessions are just one big price gouge. It’s like the worst kept secret ever. Everything in those places is a ripoff. $8 for a bottle of water? No thanks!
There are some things in life that just aren’t worth it. We can anticipate the cost being far too high.
But what we see in this passage is that Jesus knew what was expected of him. He knew he was going to have to go to the cross, and yet, he did it.
Jesus maintained his commitment to the Lord’s will, in spite of knowing what it would cost him. And we learn a few things through this passage: first, we see the agony of Jesus’ soul (vv. 27-30). Second, we see the power of the cross (vv. 31-33). And lastly, we’re called to walk in light (vv. 34-36).
Here we have Jesus, and he’s talking to a crowd, and as we saw last week, there were Greeks there as well. And it’s important to understand that Jesus is still discussing “his hour.”
Last week, we saw in verse 23 that Jesus said, ““The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” And up to that particular point Jesus had been consistently saying that his hour had not yet come. But now, Jesus is saying that his hour has come. That it is upon him.
The agony of Jesus’ soul (vv. 27-30)
Which is of course, why Jesus says that his “soul is troubled.” And when Jesus says that his soul is troubled, he doesn’t mean that he’s experiencing a little stress or anxiety.
The Greek word there for trouble is, “tarassō” which means extreme horror, fear, or revulsion.
So, Jesus is saying that he has deep horror and fear in his soul. And we all know what he’s referring to, don’t we? Jesus is feeling horror in his soul in anticipation of the cross. Jesus is fully aware of what is required of him and what it will cost.
What we see here is in fact, very similar to what we read in Mark 14 when Jesus is in the Garden of Gethsemane. Remember what he says there? “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
I think that really helps us understand what we read in verse 27. He’s feeling horror, dread, and fear because he knows that the wrath of God is going to be poured out upon him on the cross. And that had to be done in order to atone for our sins and satisfy God’s perfect, holy judgment.
Look again at verse 27, Jesus asks himself, “And what shall I say?” In other words, what should I do because my soul is in such anguish as I consider the cross? “Father save me from this hour.”
If you’re looking at verse 27 in the ESV it translates this portion as two back to back questions. However, I think it’s best to look at it as a question and response: “And what shall I say?” Answer: “Father save me from this hour.”
But what is this inner dialogue? It’s a prayer! Does he pray a super long prayer full of dense theological words? No. He simply prays, “Father save me from this hour.” It’s similar to what he said in Mark, “Remove this cup from me.” In other words, “save me from agony, torment, and pain of the cross.”
It’s fairly significant that Jesus is feeling deep anguish in his soul and his response is to offer a short prayer.
It’s always tough to draw worthwhile applications from Jesus’ life and directly apply it to us. No one here can truly compare himself or herself to Jesus. We’ve all suffered to varying degrees, but none of us have faced the agony that awaited Jesus on the cross. Anything compared to what Jesus went through seems lame. But the principle is still applicable to all of us.
We’ve all experienced dread walking into the office, hospital, or even your own house. How do you respond to that feeling?
If you’re anything like me, you start preparing your speech, or defense, or bracing yourself for the worst. If I lose my job, I can pick up work doing x, y, or z, and that can bridge the gap. Aren’t those the normal thoughts that we have when we know we are walking into something bad?
Prayer is so often an afterthought? A pastor friend of mine once told that, “no one is proud of their prayer life.” And I find that to be generally true. No Christian has ever thought, I’m spending too much of my time in prayer. I need to pray less. The reality is, most of us rarely pray. Worse than that, most of us rarely even think to pray.
I can’t help but wonder if we just don’t believe there’s any value in it.
Several years ago, I was riding with a guy in a car and he was explaining to me why he had walked away from the faith. And one of the things that he cited as a reason for walking away from the faith was that he didn’t understand prayer. If God knew what he was going to do and was going to do it anyway, why bother? What’s the point in prayer?
Perhaps you’ve even wondered the same thing! I’ve always appreciated the way the Westminster Shorter Catechism defines prayer. Question 98 asks,
What is prayer? A. Prayer is an offering up of our desires unto God, for things agreeable to his will, in the name of Christ, with confession of our sins, and thankful acknowledgment of his mercies.
Notice how the shorter catechism defines prayer. Prayer isn’t you convincing God to see things your way, or to follow through with what you want. We shouldn’t view prayer as an opportunity to persuade God, rather, prayer is conforming your desires to God’s will.
“Prayer is an offering up of our desires unto God, for things agreeable to his will.” Isn’t that language so good? It’s an “offering up” of your desires. You're talking to God about your desires, but you’re holding them with open hands. But on the most fundamental level, we should pray that our heart’s desires reflect the will of God. That’s what prayer is all about. Spending time in prayer is one of the ordinary means of grace by which God forms, molds, and changes you.
That’s why so many believers that you and I respect are men and women of prayer. Prayer is the engine of their sanctification.
Jesus is praying, “Father, save me from this hour.” Father, give me another way to accomplish redemption. “Remove this cup from me.” And it’s almost as soon as the words leave his mouth, he remembers, “But for this purpose I have come to this hour.” I have come to earth for the cross. Or to put it another way, “Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
If you’ve been worshiping with us for a while, you’ve probably noticed that we recite the Lord’s Prayer each week. Hopefully, it’s been seared into your head by this point. But there’s something to those incredible words, “Thy will be done!” aren’t there?
Isn’t Jesus doing exactly what we’re talking about? He’s talking to God about his fears, but is still willing to submit to his will.
You see, Jesus knew exactly what it was that he was supposed to do. He knew that he came to earth in order to suffer and die, and on the cross. He knew exactly what was going to happen and he intended to follow through. He wasn’t going to shrink back because he knew the cross would display and maximize the glory of God.
It’s how Jesus closes his prayer: “Father, glorify your name.” Not “glorify my name.” No doubt, his name would be honored. Paul tells us this in Philippians 2: “Therefore God has highly exalted [Jesus] and bestowed on him the name that is above every name.”
Jesus would receive honor and glory through the cross, but that wasn’t his focus. His focus was on Soli Deo Gloria. Glory to God alone. Since I brought the shorter catechism up once, maybe we should all recite Westminster Shorter Catechism question 1 together:
What is the chief end of man? Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.
Everything really boils down to this singular point, which is of course why, it’s the first question in the shorter catechism. It succinctly summarizes what we, as Christians should be all about: giving God the glory.
You see, Jesus was willing to suffer and die on the cross, for our sins so that God would be glorified. That’s what it was all about.
And notice that God himself responds audibly in verse 28: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”
Scripture only records God speaking audibly to Jesus in three places: God spoke when John the Baptist baptized Jesus. God spoke at the transfiguration. And the third time, where a gospel records God speaking is right here. We forget about this one don’t we?
He’s already received glory through the life of Jesus Christ, but he will receive maximum glory when he accomplishes his mission on the cross.
It really goes without saying that God’s name would not have been glorified if Jesus hadn’t gone to the cross.
Just imagine for a second a father telling his teenage son who wants to go out and spend time with his friends: son be careful with your friends and be back by 10pm. Only for him to wake up at 2am because his son was arrested for a DUI.
Consider the exact same scenario, but this time with a different outcome. A teenage son wants to hang out with his friends. His father says, “son, be careful with your friends and be home by 10pm.” That night, the door swings open at 9:30pm and it’s his son. He says, “Dad, everyone started drinking, and it was at that point I knew I needed to leave, not to mention, you asked me to be home by 10pm.”
Both scenarios tell you something about the son and the Father don’t they? If a son completely disregards the words of his father, that tells you that the son has little to no love for his father. But the opposite is true as well. A son that consistently obeys the words of his father tells you that he loves him.
Isn’t that precisely what we see in our passage? Christ’s willing obedience brings the Father glory. And God says that Christ’s active obedience had already glorified him but what his obedience on the cross will glorify him even more.
The power of the cross (vv. 31-33)
And isn't it interesting how Jesus responds to what God says? “This voice has come for your sake, not mine.” That voice wasn’t for me, it was for you. Because the crowd didn’t fully understand what had happened. Maybe it was angels. Maybe it was thunder. The clear implication is that they were trying to ignore, deny, or disregard whatever they had just heard.
Which is why Jesus says what he says in verse 31, “Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out.”
Keep in mind that everything is related to Jesus’ “hour,” and remember his “hour” is no longer at some point in the future. It is present. It is happening, “now.” So, the “now” at the beginning of verse 31, is again, a reference to the cross.
It really goes without saying that the cross represents grace, mercy, and forgiveness of sins, but according to Jesus the cross also represents judgment. When was the last time you heard someone refer to the cross of Jesus Christ as judgment? That’s typically not the way it’s thought of or described.
What Jesus is saying is that, if you disregard him, mock the cross, if you ultimately reject him, then you have condemned yourself.
VMI has one of the most rigid Honor Systems in the country. One honor violation and a cadet is dismissed. One strike and you’re out. And the Honor System was very simple: A cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, nor tolerate those who do. And the Honor Court is responsible for pounding that into the heads of the freshman or more affectionately known as Rats. And day after day the Rats are forced to repeat the Honor Code, “A cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, nor tolerate those who do.”
It gets to the point where you're basically saying in your sleep. But there’s a method to the madness and that is to remove any opportunity for an excuse. It’s even written out on the Honor Code that “ignorance is no excuse.” A cadet at VMI can’t say, “well I didn’t know this was a problem… yes, you did!”
In a similar way, indifferent, ignorance, and neglect of Jesus Christ is not an excuse. You can’t live your life pretending like Jesus doesn’t exist and expect to get a pass on judgment day.
Look at verse 32, “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” The moment he’s lifted up on the cross he’ll draw people from everywhere to himself. Of course, Jesus isn’t saying he’ll save every person on the face of the earth, rather “all people” is a way of expressing all types of people, that is, people from every tribe, tongue, and nation.
Which had just happened! Because Jesus was there speaking to the Greeks! The Greeks were representing all people. But that has an additional implication: Satan’s grasp on the world has been weakened. Of course, Satan is prowling around like a lion which is true, but he’s been restricted. He’s shackled. He’s been chained. He’s like a small child on a backpack lease!
And that’s because the gospel message of Jesus Christ was going worldwide! It’s relevant for all people. Satan was going to be cast off of his throne.
The gospel of Christ wasn’t just good news for the people of Israel, it’s good news for all people for all of time! The gospel message is thicker than blood. It goes far beyond ethnicity or race, age, socio-economic level. The gospel was veiled, the nations were deceived, but Jesus changed all of that! Jesus sits on the throne, not Satan.
The cross of Jesus Christ is loaded with meaning, which is why John gives an editorial note in verse 33, “He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die.”
But the cross of Jesus Christ accomplishes its purpose! The cross is victorious! For some that means judgment and condemnation. But for others it represents grace, mercy, forgiveness and eternal life.
Walk in light (vv. 34-36)
But perhaps you noticed, that by verses 34-36, things take a bit of a turn. This time, the crowd is following along with what Jesus is saying. As we’ve previously seen in the book of John, that’s not always the case.
But here it is. They understand that he’s the promised deliverer, he’s the Messiah. But there’s a discrepancy between their understanding of the Messiah and what Jesus is telling them. Look at verse 34, “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?””
Primarily the first five books of the Bible, which is sometimes also referred to as the Pentatuach or Torah, is commonly referred to as “the Law.” So what the crowd is telling Jesus is, Scripture tells us that the Christ, or Messiah, will live forever, but you say that the Son of Man (which is again, another reference to the Christ or Messiah) will be lifted up. That is, the Messiah must die. And so in the snarkiest way possible ask, “Who is this Son of Man?”
So there’s the problem: the crowd understands the Messiah to be an eternal king, but Jesus says that the Messiah must die, which in their minds is a contradiction! Both cannot be true! Right? We know of course that Jesus does reign eternally, because he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. Because Jesus’ kingdom is not of this world, he rules and reigns over the hearts of men and women - it’s a spiritual kingdom!
And of course, all of that is true, but it’s not how Jesus responds to the crowd is it? He doesn’t succinctly explain the theology of the kingdom like I just tried to do. He takes a totally different approach to the question.
Look at how Jesus responds in verses 35-36:
“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. 36 While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.”
No doubt traveling would have been on everyone’s mind since they were in Jerusalem for the Passover. And so best travel pilgrim practices would have been a very appropriate illustration. And get this everyone, if you’re walking a long distance you want to do it ideally during the day. You want the light to help guide you as you travel. Traveling at night is so much harder.
You really know you’re starting to get older when you can’t decide if driving at night is worth it!
Obviously, Jesus is referring to himself as the light. But he’s telling the crowd, don’t shut your eyes, don’t close me out, because I’m not going to be with you much longer. I’m going to the cross. Take what I say seriously!
What Jesus is saying here is quite evangelistic, isn’t it? He’s graciously offering himself to the crowd. Which is amazing when you consider the fact that they had just insulted him.
And here’s the overall point: if you’re following Jesus you know where you’re going, but if you’re not following him, you’re lost.
After all, Jesus says that if you follow him, you’re a son of light. Jesus is telling the crowd here to trust him or follow him.
And it’s quite interesting too, when you consider the fact that Jesus hid himself from them. I think the second part of verse 36 goes with what we just read and I’ll tell you why: Jesus would disappear periodically when things would get dicey. But here, it’s a sign act. The prophets of old would sometimes physically act out their prophecies. Hosea married Gomer in order to demonstrate Israel’s infidelity to the Lord.
Jesus is doing something similar here. He disappeared in order to give them a taste of what it would be like without him. He’s acting out what he just told them.
When you look at this passage holistically it really puts it into perspective. Jesus maintained his commitment to the Lord’s will, in spite of knowing what it would cost him.
But what does Jesus say as he anticipates the cross? “Father, glorify your name.”
Because here’s the reality check: all of us are going to walk through hard things. In fact, many of you are walking through incredibly difficult life circumstances right now.
Are you willing to say, even in the midst of difficult circumstances, “Father, glorify your name.”
You can walk through hard things if so long as you realize deep in the core of your being that God has a purpose in it. Jesus maintained his commitment to the Lord’s will, in spite of knowing the deep cost, why?
Only God can take the lemons we get handed in life and turn them into lemonade! Isn’t that exactly what happened on the cross? On the surface the cross appears so evil, so unjust, so wrong, but in reality it’s glorious, wonderful and good.
Ladies and gentlemen, trouble is coming. Pain, sorrow, and suffering is always one diagnosis or phone call away. If you are a Christian here today, commit yourself to the Lord and His will so that when you’re in that dark valley you can say with confidence, “Father, glorify your name.”
Amen. Let’s pray together.
