Day 1100: Seeing, and believing. - John 12 vs 37 - 50

37-38 Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him, 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?” 39-41 Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said, “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.” Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him. 42-43 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; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.

44-47 And Jesus cried out and said, “Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me. And whoever sees me sees him who sent me. I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness. 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. 48-50 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. 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. And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me.” John 12:37-50 English Standard Version

The apostle John here gives us his conclusion as to why so many who’d seen the works of Jesus refused to believe in Him. He says it was a fulfilment of words that Isaiah had spoken some 700 years earlier. But then John goes further and quotes another verse from Isaiah which tells us that God's hand was in their spiritual blindness. What were the two things that were needed to recognize who Jesus is? (vs 39-41)

Our eyes need to see, and our hearts need to understand, before we are able to turn to God for healing. Interesting to recall that Saul was made physically blind before Ananias opened his eyes, and he became Paul. And notice too how John says that Isaiah said these things because 'he saw his glory, and spoke of him.' Isaiah was talking about Jesus.

But there's another step that needs to be taken before one can be saved, and it's the step of confessing Christ as Saviour and Lord. John tells us that even some leaders believed in Jesus, but preferred the praise of man rather than the glory that comes from God. Paul said: “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.” (Romans 10:9-10) Hardness of heart and the fear of man are two tragic conditions that can keep us from confessing Christ.

And so Jesus cried out to the people to believe that He had truly come from God, saying “Whoever sees me sees him who sent me”. He had come to remove the darkness from our hearts. But what does true belief involve?

Jesus gives the answer when He said: “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.” Listen to how John explains this in his epistle. He said: “By this we know that we've come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. Whoever says 'I know Him' but doesn't keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps His word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in Him: whoever says he abides in Him ought to walk in the same way in which He walked.” (1 John 2:3-6)

Seeing who Jesus is, and believing on Him with the heart, ought to lead to walking as He walked. May God open our eyes more and more to see the loveliness of His Son, and may our hearts be softened to be His true disciples.