This sermon was preached by Rev. Mark Peterson at Christ the King Lutheran church on March 22, 2015.
Gospel: John 12:20–33
20Now
among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. 21They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida
in Galilee, and said to him, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus." 22Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew
and Philip went and told Jesus. 23Jesus
answered them, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain
of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if
it dies, it bears much fruit. 25Those
who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will
keep it for eternal life. 26Whoever
serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also.
Whoever serves me, the Father will honor.
27Now my soul is troubled. And what should
I say — 'Father, save me from this hour'? No, it is for this reason that I have
come to this hour. 28Father,
glorify your name." Then a voice came from heaven, "I have glorified
it, and I will glorify it again." 29The
crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said,
"An angel has spoken to him." 30Jesus
answered, "This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. 31Now is the judgment of this world; now
the ruler of this world will be driven out.
32And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all
people to myself." 33He
said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die.
Greetings to you in the name of Jesus Christ,
I bet, that Jesus’ disciples were getting pretty excited.
Big things were beginning to happen, like really big things. Sure, Jesus had
done some pretty amazing things, or miracles, before. Miracles like feeding
thousands of people with only five loaves and two fish. Miracles like, making a
blind man see, walking on water, and even changing water into wine.
These miracles were impressive, but they paled in
comparison to Jesus’ latest feat, the raising of Lazarus, from being most
certainly dead, to all the way alive. This latest miracle, done in the city of
Jerusalem, while the Passover Holiday season was beginning to enter into full
swing, was beginning to really stir-up interest in Jesus.
And so, I’m sure Jesus’ disciples, his inner-circle, were
pretty excited because now, the time had come for the Jesus Show, the greatest
show on earth, to become successful, to go viral, to finally start turning a
profit of glory and power for Jesus, and of course those who knew him best.
This is where our Gospel reading for today picks things
up. The Jesus, Son of God marketing phase of the campaign was over, and now was
the time for the main event to begin. And here come some customers, some
Greeks, that wish to see Jesus, the one who raises the dead.
Now was that time, as we hear Jesus saying, “The hour has
come for the Son of Man to be glorified.”
But there were no great miracles, instead, Jesus compares
himself to a grain of wheat that must die. Raising people from the dead can
draw a crowd, but comparing yourself to seeds isn’t going to keep them coming.
Our Gospel isn’t clear if the Greeks ever got to see
Jesus, but it does seem pretty clear that the greatest show on earth, the Jesus
Christ Show, isn’t really what we humans would expect. If the time had come for
Jesus to be glorified, wouldn’t it make sense for him to continue doing
glorious things, like raising people from the dead?
Today, over 2000 years since those Greeks wanted to see
the Jesus Show, it seems to me that as we come to see Jesus, our expectations
are a little lower. When it comes time to see Jesus, we have different, less
miraculous needs that we want to see filled. We want the guy who will restore
some sanity to our fast-paced world, and give us some peace of mind in contrast
to the images of violence and terror that are plastered all over our various
types of media. We want the, bumpers sticker, “Let go, let God” Jesus. Or the
country song, “Jesus take the Wheel” type of deity. Maybe, we want the “power
of positive thinking Jesus.” The Jesus who, with enough faith, can take away
our stress, and replace it with a calm and confidence that everything will work
out for God’s glory. In an age of
modernity and convenience, and an area of the world that is about as wealthy as
they come, we don’t long to see Jesus the miracle-worker as much as we long to
see Jesus the affirmer, motivator, and comforter, who gives us balance and
purpose. The one who tells us that we are ok, and that everything will be ok.
Though the needs we want our image of Jesus to meet are
often different than those of the Greeks so long ago, the Jesus that actually
reveals himself to us remains the same. This is the one who is like a grain of
wheat, the One who will be glorified not by his miracles, or his ability to
meet every need that each person has, but by his death.
When we long to see Jesus, sometimes he surprises us, disappoints
us even, and gives us an image of a God who brings us salvation not by deeds of
power, but through the vulnerability his great love for us and all of creation,
produces in him. It is hard for us to fully comprehend this image, because we
tend to romanticize this sacrifice and take for granted the extent of God’s
love. Even today, in our quest for spiritual fulfillment, or satisfaction, we
tend to separate the fact that if Jesus could raise Lazarus from the dead, he
could certainly find less painful ways to give us what we need, to make sure we
act right, or to keep us in line.
But Jesus loves us, and is devoted to us, and, though he
doesn’t always give us what we need, or think we need, he is willing to share
his life-giving truth with us, even though he knows we’re going to nail him to
a cross. Which is really a hard thing even for Jesus to do.
As we read in John, at this time, the hour of his glory,
Jesus isn’t in a state of equanimity or mindful balance, his soul is troubled, he’s
stressed out over the sin of this world, our sin, and what this sin will cost
him in his service to the truth.
Is this, stressed out Jesus, the Jesus that the Greeks
came to see? Is it the Jesus that we want to see? Is this the Jesus we want to
trust, the one who doesn’t give us all we need, but who calls us to serve and
follow him wherever he may lead? In my own life, I like the idea of trusting in
God, and depending on a Savior named Jesus who loves us, but on those occasions
when I say “here Jesus, you take the wheel”, I grab it right back the minute I see
that he’s driving me straight to the cross.
The Good News in all this, is that the Jesus Christ show
which has brought salvation to our world, doesn’t depend on me in order to go
on. Jesus continues to be the grain of wheat that dies and from this death new
and abundant life has been born. This is life so abundant, that it continues to
feed us today, with Christ’s body in the bread and wine of Holy Communion. This
is the feast that will continue feeding the world with God’s life and love for
all of eternity.
When Jesus is revealed to us, in the glory of the cross,
it might not be the Jesus we were expecting, or even the one who fills all our
needs, but it is the Jesus who loves us so much that he gives his life for us.
May this truth, whether it troubles our souls or brings them peace, be enough.
In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy
Spirit,
Amen
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