Hope in Christ Fellowship
The Hour of Glorification
  • Nothing But the Blood
  • We read in...
    John 12:20–33 NASB95PARA
    20 Now there were some Greeks among those who were going up to worship at the feast; 21 these then came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and began to ask him, saying, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” 22 Philip came and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip came and told Jesus. 23 And Jesus answered them, saying, “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 He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal. 26 If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him. 27 “Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour. 28 Father, glorify Your name.” Then a voice came out of heaven: “I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.” 29 So the crowd of people who stood by and heard it were saying that it had thundered; others were saying, “An angel has spoken to Him.” 30 Jesus answered and said, “This voice has not come for My sake, but for your sakes. 31 Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. 32 And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.” 33 But He was saying this to indicate the kind of death by which He was to die.
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    John 12:20 NASB95PARA
    20 Now there were some Greeks among those who were going up to worship at the feast;
    The crowd was massive in Jerusalem. Some have estimated the crowd to have been at around 2.7 million that had come to the celebration of the Passover Feast.
    Among the crowd were some Greeks.
    Who were these Greeks? We are not given any names, we are not given any number of people. But what is significant about the mention of these Greeks were that they we not Jews!
    These were people outside the Jewish heritage, who came in fear of God and they came to worship in the Jewish synagogues and feasts.
    It seems certain that the coming of the Greeks was symbolic of the coming of the non-Jewish world, seeking to worship God through Christ.
    The truth of the Gospel was spreading beyond the bounds of the Jews, unto the Gentiles.
    These were those who had turned from their pagan religion and came to “fall down and worship,” the One true God.
    Consider this...
    John 12:21 NASB95PARA
    21 these then came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and began to ask him, saying, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.”
    I can imagine that they felt like outsiders, being that they were non-Jews.
    They came to Philip with a wish. And that wish was to see or speak with Jesus!
    If we consider for just a moment, how that the Jewish leaders in hostility, wanted Jesus to be done away with, yet, these Greeks genuinely “wished” to see Jesus.
    In the days that lie ahead, the Jews would verbalize their final rejection of Him. In the days that lie ahead, the Jews would cry out, “Crucify HIM!”
    Yet, the Greeks, the Gentiles, the non-Jews would seek to know Him more!
    John 12:22–23 NASB95PARA
    22 Philip came and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip came and told Jesus. 23 And Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
    We are not told whether or not Jesus actually met with these Greeks or Gentiles.
    We need to remember that these Greeks represent Gentile interest.
    In the near future, as the Lord called the church, a new people made of both Jews and Gentiles, would be His witness in the world.
    Jesus responds to Philip and Andrew by saying, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
    The knowledge of Christ would soon spread throughout every region of the world. Not only would the gospel come to the Jews and a few Greeks, but the good news would spread throughout the whole world.
    For a moment, the crowd thought that Jesus meant that He was about to overthrow the Romans and establish His earthly kingdom.
    But in this next verse, Jesus shatters any illusions that the crowd might have about His establishment of His earthly kingdom.
    Jesus exclaims...
    John 12:24 NASB95PARA
    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.
    What? Wait just a minute! What are You saying?
    The Lord was saying that He would be glorified, but it would be through His death and resurrection.
    There had to be a CROSS! The only way there could ever be the establishing of His promised Kingdom in all of its glory, there had to be a CROSS!
    The gospel would spread far beyond the boarders of Israel to all the nations of the world, but it would be after His death at Calvary.
    The Greeks wanted to see Jesus, but Jesus knew that the only way they could truly enjoy fellowship with Him was through His atoning sacrifice.
    Jesus relates His death to the falling of a grain of wheat into the earth and dies. Then and only then would it produce an abundant harvest.
    Then and only then would salvation come to the elect, of every tribe and every tongue, to both Jew and Gentile.
    The result of His death would produce a spiritual harvest of those who would enjoy eternal life.
    The Lord continues...
    John 12:25 NASB
    25 “He who loves his life loses it; and he who hates his life in this world shall keep it to life eternal.
    Many are those who have a “my life” mentality…saying “it is my life to do such and such as I please.”
    Similarly we hear in today's rebellious crowds, “it’s MY body…to do with it as I please.”
    This cannot work for the redeemed, for the Bible says that
    1 Corinthians 6:19–20 KJV 1900
    19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.
    We would do well to remember that this body of flesh in which we live, is also occupied by the Holy Spirit, if in fact we are saved!
    Not only is our body His but so is our spirit.
    Jesus says...
    John 12:25 NASB95PARA
    25 He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal.
    Despite what some may tell you, this present life is not the best one.
    Our heart must have the right perspective on life.
    Hating one’s life is a Semitic expression that has the connotation of giving preference to one thing over another.
    We must prefer Christ over all. We must prefer Christ above all else. Christ’s will above our own.
    The demand of the Gospel is that we forsake all and follow Christ.
    Matthew 13:44–46 NASB
    44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has, and buys that field. 45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, 46 and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had, and bought it.
    Jesus continues...
    John 12:26 NASB95PARA
    26 If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.
    We must be mindful, that true salvation is not only affection but also…direction.
    Abraham’s obedience was counted to him as righteousness. Those who refuse to live in obedience to Christ, are NOT servants of His.
    The statement begins questionable…IF anyone serves Me, he MUST follow Me
    To serve Him is to follow Him! How do we do that? By walking in the same manner as He walked. To live in obedience to the scriptures. To live in a way that would bring honor to the Lord. By conducting ourselves in a holy manner at all times.
    The glorious promise is given here…and where I AM, the My servant will be also! This, dear friend, is nothing short of the promise of heaven eternal!
    Jesus has promised to come again, and receive those who are His unto Himself!
    It is a place where the enemy of Christ can not come!
    The second blessed promise for the one who serves Jesus is that the Father will honor him.
    Although the world despises Christ and those who serve Him, it is promised that the Father will honor those who serve His Son.
    John 12:27 NASB95PARA
    27 “Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour.
    The death of Jesus was predetermined by God in eternity past, even before the foundation of the world.
    The death of Jesus was central to God’s redemptive plan, Jesus “for the joy set before Him endured the cross.”
    Jesus did not go to the cross without feeling. In His flesh, Jesus felt all the pain associated with bearing the curse for sin.
    What Jesus is saying here is this… “My soul has become troubled, my soul has become horrified by what I am facing.”
    YET what shall I say, ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour.
    Jesus was not trying to avoid the agony of the cross, He came for this very purpose.
    Like Jesus told Peter when he attacked those who came to arrest Jesus, Jesus said to him, “Do you think that I cannot appear to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels?”
    God’s plan called for Him to die as a sacrifice for sin and Jesus would complete the mission the Father had assigned Him.
    Jesus prayed...
    John 12:28 NASB95PARA
    28 Father, glorify Your name.” Then a voice came out of heaven: “I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.”
    In His life and in His death, Christ prayed that the Father would be glorified.
    Then the thunderous voice of God came forth out of heaven. “I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.”
    God the Father spoke in an audible voice confirming to the people that He is glorified through His Son Jesus’ life and ministry, and soon again through His death.
    John 12:29–30 NASB95PARA
    29 So the crowd of people who stood by and heard it were saying that it had thundered; others were saying, “An angel has spoken to Him.” 30 Jesus answered and said, “This voice has not come for My sake, but for your sakes.
    The voice was audible, but the crowd of people who stood by didn’t understand it. Part of them thought it was the voice of an angel, the other part thought it was the sound of thunder.
    Like those who were with Paul on the road to Damascus, the crowd heard the sound of the voice, but did not understand the meaning of the words.
    Like most in our day, because of hardness of the heart, many will not hear the words of God. Because of sinful fallenness and sovereign judgment, fallen people are deaf. Those who are dead in their sins, those who are members of Satan’s kingdom are blind by Satan, to the truth of the gospel, having no capacity for understanding God’s Word.
    Paul writes...
    2 Corinthians 4:3–4 NASB
    3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, 4 in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
    Paul said, “A natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.”
    Even though the crowd did not understand the words uttered by God’s voice, God’s answer to Jesus’ prayer still conveyed to them divine affirmation of the Son.
    John 12:31–33 NASB95PARA
    31 Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. 32 And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.” 33 But He was saying this to indicate the kind of death by which He was to die.
    Jesus had not yet die on the cross of Calvary, yet, in these verses we can see the anticipation of victory.
    His death would bring judgment upon this world. His death would bring judgment on the evil, satanic system and all who are in it who are in rebellion against God.
    The Satanic world system thought it had victory over Christ at the cross, but in reality the doom of the unbelieving wicked world was sealed by its rejection of Jesus Christ.
    Eternal judgment of hell lies ahead for those down thru history who have rejected Christ.
    Not only would Christ’s death bring judgment on the evil world system, but also at the same time, His death would bring judgment on its wicked ruler... Satan. You see, Satan is a defeated foe.
    When Christ brings judgment and destruction upon the earth, Satan will have nothing to rule, he will lose his authority and influence.
    During the tribulation period, Satan will be permanently cast out of heaven, where he currently still has access to accuse believers.
    According to the Book of Revelation, at the end of the great tribulation, Satan will be cast into the bottomless pit a thousand years, during Christ’s millennial reign.
    At the end of the millennium, Satan and his demons, will finally be cast into the lake of fire, to be tormented eternally without end.
    Jesus says, “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself”
    By means of His sacrificial death, being nailed to and hanging from the cross, He would draw people from every nation around the world to salvation.
    The only way to God is through the cross. It is only thru Christ’s death that sin is satisfactorily atoned for and divine forgiveness granted.

      • John 12:20–33KJV1900

      • John 12:20KJV1900

      • John 12:21KJV1900

      • John 12:22–23KJV1900

      • John 12:24KJV1900

      • John 12:25KJV1900

      • 1 Corinthians 6:19–20KJV1900

      • John 12:25KJV1900

      • Matthew 13:44–46KJV1900

      • John 12:26KJV1900

      • John 12:27KJV1900

      • John 12:28KJV1900

      • John 12:29–30KJV1900

      • 2 Corinthians 4:3–4KJV1900

      • John 12:31–33KJV1900

Hope in Christ Fellowship
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