Day 1096: Make the most of the light - John 12 vs 27 - 36

27-28 “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. 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.” 30-33 Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine. Now is the judgement of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 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 for ever. 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. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” 36 When Jesus had said these things, he departed and hid himself from them. John 12:27-36 English Standard Version

With the request of some Greek Jews to see Him, Jesus said that “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.” (John 12:23-25) But what Jesus says in vs 27 show that this was no light matter. His very soul was troubled! Yet He asked that the Fathers name be glorified. And from heaven came His Father's voice “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”

We would've thought that this was for Jesus own encouragement, but He tells the people it was for them. And then He speaks of being 'lifted up', and of Satan being cast out. See just what Jesus' death would accomplish! Luke tells us that when the devil sought to sidetrack Jesus from His mission, that he “took Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, and said to Him, 'To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will.'“ But now the devil’s time was over. He who deceived the nations would deceive them no longer,

We see too that Jesus spoke those words to describe by what kind of death he would die. By speaking of 'being lifted up', Jesus was referring to His coming crucifixion. Earlier in this gospel He had compared this to what Moses had done, saying: “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life.”

At this point, Jesus was challenged by the crowd. They were right in saying that Moses' law spoke of Messiah's kingdom being eternal. But they were incorrect in that they'd missed what prophets like Isaiah had said. Isaiah spoke of the suffering servant of God saying: “They made His grave with the wicked, and with a rich man in His death, although He had done no violence, and there was no deceit in His mouth.” (Isaiah 53:10) But, in the next verse, Isaiah spoke of His finished work, and of His resurrection. He wrote: “Out of the anguish of His soul He shall see and be satisfied; by His knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and He shall bear their iniquities.”

How did Jesus respond to those who asked Him this question? (vs 35)

He did not set out to explain what Isaiah (and others had said, because they already had those words. Instead, He told them that He would only be with them a little longer, and they were to make the best use of that light while there was time. They were to believe on Him before it was too late. And, after saying that, John tells us Jesus departed, and hid Himself from them.

So heres a challenge for us too. We should make the most of the light that Jesus is, if we are to be true disciples. We should spend time in His word, and ask Him for understanding and a willingness to obey. He was lifted up - that we might come to Him.