New Life Bible Fellowship Church
4-6-25
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  • Nothing But the Blood
  • Beneath The Cross
  • Doxology

  • Introduction:

    Last week we began to see how Jesus shifts His ministry focus from a public ministry to a more private one, focusing on his true followers and the cost of what it would mean to be a true follower of Christ, in His Preparation For Rejection and Death Part 1, from John 12:1-26.
    This morning we will look at how Jesus moves through His destiny with purpose and resolve as He submits to the details that have been ordained for Him, and begins to show by this focused private ministry that His followers would become lights in a dark world, reflecting the light of their Savior, even though that light may not be well recieved. So lets look at Part 2 of Jesus’ Preparation For Rejection and Death, from John 12:27-50.

    Text: John 12:27-50

    John 12:27–50 ESV
    27 “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. 28 Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” 30 Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine. 31 Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. 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?” 35 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. 36 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. 37 Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him, 38 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?” 39 Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said, 40 “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.” 41 Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him. 42 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; 43 for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God. 44 And Jesus cried out and said, “Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me. 45 And whoever sees me sees him who sent me. 46 I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness. 47 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. 48 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. 49 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. 50 And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me.”

    Main Idea: Since Jesus is the light that transforms our existence, we His people are urged to spread that light in a world shrouded in darkness.

    Jesus if you remember last week, had rode into Jerusalem on a donkey’s colt, and was heralded as the Son of David, and the crowds shouted Hosanna, or “Save Now”, and yet Jesus was about to show what true salvation looked like, as he shows us…

    I. Sacrificial Suffering as Salvation (12:27-34)

    We begin with a prayer by Jesus to His Father…a prayer of purposeful submission, and a request for the sake of all those with Him…
    27 “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.
    Now is my soul troubled. Jesus is greatly troubled by the prospect of bearing the wrath of His holy Father in the place of sinners, echoing the distress of the psalmists (Ps. 6:3; cf. Ps 42:5, 11).
    for this purpose I have come to this hour - Nevertheless, He accepts His role and reasserts His commitment to the Father’s will and glory, as He will do so again in Gethsemane (Mark 14:33–39). In his distress, He turns His focus to the Father, whose will He came to do…
    28 Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”
    glorify your name - a call by the Son to His Father to display His glory, the various attributes and characteristics of His God-ness for all to see.
    a voice came from heaven. In three places in the Gospels, the Father speaks directly from heaven about Jesus: at His baptism (Matt. 3:17), at the transfiguration (Matt. 17:5), and here. For the benefit of the disciples (v. 30). In each case, the Father places His seal of approval upon Jesus’ saving work, thus bringing glory to His name.
    29 The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.”
    crowd … said that it had thundered. Events of eternal consequence are occurring in the unseen spiritual realm, but when unbelievers see or hear a manifestation of them (even the very voice of God speaking from heaven), they misinterpret them as natural events, showing their spiritual blindness.
    30 Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine. - Again, Jesus declares that His Father has revealed His seal of approval and His glorious attributes for the benefit of His true followers, and adds to his declaration a profound reality of what is about to happen…
    31 Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out.
    Now is the judgment of this world. By His coming death, Jesus will end the power and tyranny of sin over Adam’s race, judging and condemning it.
    the ruler of this world. Satan (cf. 14:30; 16:11; 2 Cor. 4:4; Eph. 2:2; 1 John 4:4; 5:19). Satan is the head of sinners and the world’s sinful structures, but the Lord is sovereign even over Him, and Satan exercises authority over God’s enemies only to the extent that God allows him. When God destroys Satan’s power, He is not violating his rights, or breaking any agreement made with him.
    Remember: it is because we as descendants of Adam and are both sinners by nature and sinners by choice. We are totally depraved, in that sin pervades every area of our being, and are therefore under the authority of the ruler of all sinners, Satan himself.
    be cast out. The death of Christ deprives Satan of grounds to accuse believers in God’s heavenly law court (Rev. 12:9–11; Zech. 3:1–10) and curtails his power to deceive and dominate humanity (Luke 10:17–19; Rev. 20:3; 2 Cor. 4:4–6).
    It is at the cross that the Devil will be cast out, that is, decisively defeated (cf. Luke 10:18; Col. 2:14–15; Heb. 2:14–15). Jesus’ triumph over Satan in his death and resurrection is the basis for his final triumph in the consummation (Rev. 20:10).
    But how will this happen since our sin has left us helpless with a debt to large for us to pay (Romans 6:23 “23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” ), this is precisely what Jesus describes next on how this will happen…
    32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”
    lifted up. This reference is two-fold, one is in reference to the crucifixion (v. 33), but also secondly, it is also a reference to His glorification. As Mediator, He will be “lifted up” to the right hand of God.
    Christ’s death on the cross, His resurrection, and His glorification together reveal the glory of God. The word “when” points to God’s sovereign purpose. The crucifixion was the keystone of God’s eternal plan to save His people.
    will draw all people. The cross exerts a universal attraction, and people of all nationalities, Gentiles as well as Jews, will be saved through it. “All” means all kinds of people without distinction—i.e., rich and poor, Jew and Gentile, not all members of the human race without exception.
    33 He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. - Jesus reveals through this statement that he would die by crucifixion, to which those who heard him understood as we read next…
    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?” - the crowd is confused by His statement regarding his crucifixion, and thus responds…
    We have heard from the Law that the Christ remains forever. the Law is one of the terms used for the entirety of the OT Scriptures (10:34; 15:25). This is a possible reference to Pss. 89:36 and Is. 9:7:
    Psalm 89:36 ESV
    36 His offspring shall endure forever, his throne as long as the sun before me.
    Isaiah 9:7 ESV
    7 Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
    the Son of Man. They understand this title, Jesus’ preferred self-designation, to be a claim to be the promised Messiah (Matt. 26:63, 64).
    lifted up. They apparently understand this to be a reference to death by hanging or crucifixion, and on the basis of Scriptures such as Ps. 89:36, 37, they cannot reconcile their view of the Messiah with the prospect of His death.
    So we saw first of all, that Jesus’ Sacrificial Suffering will be implemented as Salvation, but while he is with us, we must…

    II. Steadfastly Walk in the Light (12:35-43)

    Jesus answer to them is profound…He not only explains who He is but what is expected of those who are exposed to Him…
    35 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. 36 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.
    the light. Jesus is the “light” (v. 46; 1:4–9; 8:12; 9:5; cf. 11:9–10). His impending death will bring a period of darkness.
    Jesus’ answer is indirect; in view of the fact that the light will be with people only for a little while longer, his crucifixion is near (cf. 46; also 7:33; 16:16–19). He urges the people to believe in the light (see 8:12, 9:4 and 11:9–10) while there is still time.
    When Jesus hid himself from them, he indicated God’s imminent judgment and the completion of his revelatory work to the people of Israel (1:18), he has given over and over again the revelation about himself, clearly indicating to them that he was their Messiah, but sadly enough…
    37 Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him,
    so many signs. Jesus’ public ministry of signs is completed, and the term will reappear only once more (20:30), implying that the final sign, given not to the unbelieving world but to Jesus’ disciples, is His resurrection (20:1–29). The outcome of His sign-attested ministry is unbelief on the part of His own people as a whole, as stated in John1:11.
    John 1:11 ESV
    11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.
    Of course, this as well was prophesied…
    38 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?”
    so that - in order that…
    the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled. Jesus’ earthly public ministry is a fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy, which was largely one of judgment upon unbelieving Israel. Jesus pronounces the judgment, previously announced by Isaiah, Lord, who has believed what he heard from us (Is. 53:1), that must precede the coming kingdom. John’s paraphrase of Isaiah’s words stresses God’s direct, judicial initiative in preventing spiritual perception, as he says next…
    39 Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said,
    they could not believe. No one will truly believe unless God opens that person’s understanding by a supernatural work of the Spirit (3:3–7).
    40 “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.”
    John quotes from Isaiah 6:9-10
    Isaiah 6:9–10 ESV
    9 And he said, “Go, and say to this people: “ ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ 10 Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.”
    Seen here is John’s emphasis on both divine sovereignty and human responsibility. On the one hand, the people should have believed and are held guilty for disbelieving (“they still did not believe in him,” John 12:37). On the other hand, God blinded their eyes so that they did not have the spiritual ability to believe, and John can even say they could not believe (v. 39).
    How do we understand this? In our human logic, we can’t except to see that humanity is hard-hearted, blind and dead spiritually by nature, therefore, to blinded their eyes simply means that God allows them to continue in that state. Salvation is God invading total depravity with divine grace.
    41 Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him.
    Isaiah said these things - John seems to be claiming that when Isaiah saw the exalted King and the suffering servant, he saw Jesus’ glory.
    saw his glory. Isaiah received a vision of the glory of the enthroned God (Is. 6:1, source of the quotation in v. 40) and prophesied about the divine Suffering Servant (Is. 52:13–53:12, source of the quotation in v. 38). The “him” of whom Isaiah spoke and whose glory Isaiah saw was none other than the preincarnate Word, now made flesh as Jesus. If Abraham rejoiced to see His day (8:56), Isaiah did as well, centuries before His coming to earth.
    So what was the result of Jesus answer to the Jews and the subsequent revelation of Isaiah?…
    42 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;
    many ... believed in him. Isaiah’s announced judgment has come true, yet even some leaders become believers despite the threat of excommunication by their unbelieving peers. In a few days, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus will courageously risk exposure as disciples of Jesus (19:38–40).
    The opposition of the Jewish leaders to Jesus was not at all across-the-board; God will always have a remnant, as we see here an increasing number of the leaders themselves had come to faith, for many even of the authorities believed in him. However, their fear of the Pharisees was still strong, and hence they did not confess Jesus publicly.
    43 for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.
    John penetrates the human heart, showing again that the desire for human commendation kept them from following Jesus in a public way.
    So not only will Jesus’ Sacrificial Suffering be implemented as Salvation, and not only is there a call to Steadfastly Walk in the Light of Christ, and all that this implies with regard to their salvation, while he was still with them, but this light, we will see, is the…

    III. Saving Light of the Savior (12:44-50)

    Jesus begins with a declaration of His oneness with the Father; one in which he has declared before…
    44 And Jesus cried out and said, “Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me.
    “Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me. The close relationship of Jesus with the Father (cf. 17:21–23) is stressed in three respects:
    to believe in Christ is to believe in the Father (v. 44);
    to see Christ is to see the Father (v. 45);
    to hear Christ is to hear the Father (v. 50).
    On the other hand, rejection of Christ and His words is also a rejection of the Father and His words (Luke 10:16). This rejection results in judgment, although the leading purpose of Christ’s incarnation is the salvation of His own and not the condemnation of those who do not believe.
    45 And whoever sees me sees him who sent me. (see above)
    46 I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.
    God’s promises are for those who believe (cf. 3:16). To be sure, the Gospel is proclaimed to a wider circle, but the illumination of those who do not accept Jesus by faith is merely outward. In their hearts the darkness remains. In fact, it becomes even more intense. (like high beams in the fog)
    47 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.
    I did not come to judge the world - The main purpose of Christ’s first coming was not to bring condemnation but salvation, but he will come to judge the world when he returns again (see 48; 5:22, 27–30).
    48 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.
    The words of Christ will rise up and bring judgment on the unbelievers on judgment day.
    With respect to the word as judge, John 5:24; 5:45–47:
    John 5:24 ESV
    24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.
    John 5:45–47 ESV
    45 Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. 46 For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. 47 But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?”
    49 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.
    not spoken on my own authority indicates again that supreme authority in the Trinity belongs to the Father, and delegated authority to the Son, though they are equal in deity.
    Exactly the same thought is found in 7:16. In order to stress the idea that absolutely everything in the teaching of the Son is based upon the instruction of the Father, the synonymous clause what to speak is added to what to say, to create a double emphasis.
    50 And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me.”
    his commandment is eternal life - The instruction given to Jesus was to procure, to reveal, and to proclaim everlasting life. Hence, that instruction issues in everlasting life for his people. Perish the idea that between the father and the Son there is a wide gulf (Angry Judge versus Loving Savior).
    I say as the Father has told me - Again, the oneness of the Father and Son is declared as Jesus utters only that which the Father has given him, and he utters it exactly as he received it.

    So What?

    Do we understand that all that Jesus did was purposeful, nothing was unsuspected, nor was Jesus victimized by forces beyond His capabilities, but he submitted in all things to the will of the Father to bring salvation to His people?
    Do we understand, that in every way and at all times, Jesus revealed who he was so that not one person who disbelieved could say they did not know who He was?
    Do we realize that God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility are not mutually exclusive but work harmoniously together?
    They are not either/or, but both/and…
    No one will come to Christ unless the Father draws them, quickens them, and gives them the faith to believe.
    No one will be saved unless they personally put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ alone.
  • Lamb Of Glory
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