John 12:20-33 (NRSV)
Read John 12:20-33 on biblegateway.com
Verse 20Now among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. Verse 21They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus." Verse 22Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. Verse 23Jesus answered them, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Verse 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. Verse 25Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Verse 26Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honor.
Verse 27"Now 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. Verse 28Father, glorify your name." Then a voice came from heaven, "I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again." Verse 29The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, "An angel has spoken to him." Verse 30Jesus answered, "This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. Verse 31Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. Verse 32And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself." Verse 33He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die.
Devotion
We wish to see Jesus. Do we? Or are we, like so many
in the crowd, just dazzled by the signs Jesus has done,
including recently in John's story raising his friend Lazarus
from the grave? Dazzled? Life is complicated! It would
be a gift to find a super hero, a magic maker who could
eradicate the power of evil and make it all right again. We
need not be surprised that our affections drift toward
those whose ability to transcend a "normal" life makes
them seem larger than life—the strong, the assertive, the
attractive, the brilliant, the lucky. Our stories are full of
heroes who had the courage and might to change the
course of life for the better. But Jesus, this Jesus, was not
such a hero. The hour had come when he was about to
be revealed in all his complexity. Life springs from death.
Not simple, but true.
Prayer
Jesus, we want to see you. Make us ready. Invite us into
the paradox of your truth. Amen.