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INTRODUCTION
ILLUS: Moody Pastors Conference, President George Sweeting. “Gentlemen we should quit telling ethic jokes that are offending
our Polish, Norwegian, Swedish, Dutch brothers and sisters. We could tell Hittite Jokes, they haven’t been around for 4000
years. Here is one: &lquo;There were two Hittites named Sven and Ole.&rquo;”
We come from a lot of ethnic heritages. Interesting to list them all. Not a single Jew among us. All some stripe of Gentiles. I am
English with German and Dutch. Jeannette all English. Dublin, Ireland is Butlers Chocolate.
In Bible times to the Jewish people as God’s chosen race - there were Jews and everyone else - the pagans/Gentiles. NT times
- Romans, Greeks, (Acts 2:9-13 includes Egyptians, Cretans, Cyrene, Arabs). Yet, Rev. 5:9-10.
In Jesus’ ministry, while He was a Jew and preached to the Jew first, He still ministered to Gentiles, like the Samaritan
Woman, and to some Greeks in our text today. READ 12:20-22.
Interesting while the Jews during Passover were choosing up sides on Jesus, some Greeks came to worship (they could as long as they
stayed in the Court of the Gentiles of the Temple) and to search out Jesus. Found one of Jesus’ disciples, Philip, from
Bethsaida of Galilee, close to Gentile area and asked “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” What a great statesman...
In your spiritual journey do you too wish to see Jesus? Know Him? Talk with Him? Here is how Jesus responds to the visit of those
Greeks...
1. The Glory of Death to Life vs. 23-24
- Several times in John it is recorded that Jesus says “My hour is not yet come.” Now He says
“The hour has come...”
- “Glorified” - to fulfill His mission, do the appointed work of God. His mission in life was to die
and rise again to redeem us, give us salvation,
- As the “Son of Man” God in flesh, God incarnate. Philippians 2:5-11
- The way anyone from any nation can know Christ is through the cross and empty tomb. Romans 4:25
- Jesus uses an illustration from agriculture - plant a seed, it dies, but comes back to life to produce fruit. The
saints are the fruit with new life.
ILLUS: Wheat fields, about harvest time north. We know seed corn.
- 1 Corinthians 15:42-50 Christ’s glory of death to life...
2. The Open Invitation vs. 25-26
- v. 25 Surrender - lose life = eternal life. Hates means love less, they don’t live for this
world, they live for eternal life.
- v. 26a Service - follow = discipleship, eternal life presence of Jesus.
ILLUS: Hymn #549 “Face to Face”
- v. 26b Security/honor - eternal life honored by the Father. John 14:2
- The magnificent splendor of being in the presence of our Triune God.
- Invitation is so simple, given to individuals to choose Christ. We believe in personal salvation, Jesus is a personal
Savior. Everyone must choose.
ILLUS: Episcopal Church made a lot of news in July from annual meeting. Long time ago threw out Biblical authority.
Thus they could now approve homosexual marriage. If that is not shocking enough, concerning salvation - the
Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori on July 8 said the overarching problem in the EC is “the great
western heresy - that we can be saved as individuals, that any of us alone can be in right relationship with
God.”
- That is not heresy! But Gospel Truth - John 3:16. NT is filled with “I believe” stories - John
alone: Nathanial, Samaritan Woman. 4:41 “many more believed because of His word.” 6:68-69. 8:30
“As He spoke these things many came to believe in Him.” The healed blind man - 9:35-38.
- The invitation is open to Jews, Greeks, to all Gentiles. Ephesians 3:6
ILLUS: Like receiving a wedding invitation, enclosed card to RSVP. Jesus gives you many invitations in the Bible -
Have you RSVP your invitation?
3. The Commitment to the Cross vs. 27-33
- v.27-28a. Agony of Jesus. The cross was a despised instrument of death, the most cruel form
of death invented by man. That form of execution was predicted in the OT (Deut 21:23), and the Romans
perfected during the time of Jesus.
- Jesus knew He must go to the cross, He knew it was the will of the Father, He knew it was the means of our eternal
salvation. He the One to die for us all. Yet, the anticipation of the agony of the cross, the shame of the cross
troubled His soul - shook Him up, horrified Him.
QUOTE: John MacArthur: “The perfect tense of the verb suggests that this was an ongoing struggle for the
sinless Savior, as He recoiled in revulsion from the implications of bearing divine judgment for sin
(2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Peter 2:24). Christ did not go to the cross detached, indifferent, without feeling... In
His humanness, Jesus felt all the pain associated with bearing the curse of sin (Gal. 3:13).
- In His humanity “Father, save me from this hour?“ In His divinity “But for this purpose
I came to this hour.” For the glory of the Father’s name.
- vs. 28b-29 Answer from the Father out of heaven - for the 3rd time in Jesus’
earthly ministry the Father audibly spoke “out of heaven.”
- Jesus has glorified the Father’s Name by His life, and Jesus will glorify the Father’s Name by His death
and resurrection. Jesus’ mission is to Luke 19:10 “seek and to save that which was lost.”
- Some people thought they heard thunder, others a voice of an angel. Both incorrect. It was the voice of God. Jesus
didn’t not have to hear an audible confirmation from God the Father, He was in perfect communion with Him. But
the believers heard a voice not doubt to strength their faith, a divine affirmation of the word and work of Jesus. Yet
many heard but did not understand.
- vs.31-32 Anticipation of Victory. First over the world - the evil systems of this world will
meet their doom. Mankind schemes will fail and sinners will be judged to an eternal hell - John 3:36.
- Second over the ruler of world - the devil himself will meet his doom, “cast out” loose all
authority and influence, if the world (his domain) is judged and destroyed, he has nothing left to rule on earth, and
he is not or will not be ruling even in hell - he is there for eternal punishment.
- Thirdly, souls will be saved. When Jesus is lifted up on the cross, His saving grace is available to all people - like
the Greeks present as well as Jews. To us “will draw all men to Myself.” To all men, the
invitation is open, sadly not all accept, but you can. Eph 2:12-13
- This horrible instrument of death will become Jesus’ means of death, but death which will be transformed to
resurrected life for Him, and eternal life for all who believe in Him.
ILLUS: Symbol of the cross - nice necklace, ear rings, ties. Symbol of our faith, but don’t fail to grasp a
bit of the horror of it. At least cross is empty.
CONCLUSION
Good news for us “pagans”... “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” We can!
Have you searched and found Jesus? Your own salvation experience
Like Philip and Andrew have you brought others to meet Jesus?
The joy of winning others to Christ.
ILLUS: NCD - One of the 8 characteristics of a healthy church is Need-Oriented Evangelism - actively bringing others to Christ. One
rep for a mainline denomination asked: “We are not the most comfortable with the term evangelism, is there another term?”
“No, it is a Biblical term.” Even we are a little uncomfortable. We need to see souls saved. We need to be sharing the
good news. We need to be bringing people to Jesus, pointing them to the cross.
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