The Beginning of the End, or is it?

“Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 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. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.  If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.” (John 12:20-26 ESV)

Beginning yesterday, we entered holy week. We celebrate the foundation of Christianity through the death and resurrection of Christ. It is here Jesus, the lamb of God, was willingly led to slaughter. It is here in scripture leading up to the cross that we witness the arrest, trial, beating, humiliation, crucifixion, and death of Jesus. On Easter Sunday, we remember and glorify the resurrection of our Savior. Jesus rose from the dead in bodily form, defeating death. Having paid for our sins through penal substitution, we who openly profess our faith in Christ and repent our sins are converted, justified, and made righteous before God. We are dead to the world and alive in Christ.

Here, John writes that the “Greeks” had come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. These were not Jews of the Diaspora, Jews displaced from Israel, but Greeks who were proselytes and or Gentiles who feared God but did not fully convert to Judaism. Because they were not Jewish, they were only allowed in the outer courtyard of the Temple.

The Greeks approached Phillip, who was Jewish but whose name was Greek. Phillip also lived in Bethsaida in Galilee, which was populated by both Jews and Gentiles. It is most likely for these reasons that the Greeks approached Phillip to arrange a meeting with Jesus.

When Phillip notified Jesus of the Greek’s request, Jesus told Andrew and Phillip that His hour had come. This contrasted earlier statements made by Jesus in scripture that His hour had not yet come. Jesus knew the hours leading up to His sacrifice were at hand.

We see elsewhere in the New Testament scripture that describes the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus as a humiliation. But here, at this time, this progression of God’s plan is His glory. His crucifixion is also His glory because his humiliation is part of the path by which our Savior, following His resurrection on Earth, will ascend to the right hand of the Father in glory. The resurrection and ascension are the beginning of end times where Jesus will come a second time in glory to judge the living and the dead.

In verse 24, Jesus uses the grain of wheat and its growth from a seed to explain His own work and how all who believe will benefit from His death. We on the other side of the cross know that Christ’s sacrifice opened the door to heaven and our salvation through faith in Christ.

In verse 25, Jesus's statement, “Whoever loves his life,” reveals to the apostles that those who are self-serving and absorbed by the world will end up in ruins. On the other hand, those who have faith in Christ and lay down their lives for Him have eternal life. It is in our service to Christ, united with Him, that we actually experience this statement.

I can only imagine that Jesus saw His glory, but knowing what would transpire was trouble. Jesus trusted the Father just as we trust in Christ. Jesus knew He had been and was being glorified by the Father.

Peace and Grace!