Mark Radke walks us through John 12, looking specifically at what it means to “lift up Jesus.”
John 12.mp3 (Mark Radke)
Here is a link to the livestream video:
John 12 – Verse by Verse
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Monthly Archives: September 2020
A Prayer Prompted by John 12:27-28
27 “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. 28 Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”
Lord Jesus,
We can easily imagine why your soul would have been troubled just prior to going to the cross. The pain, the suffering, the taking of punishment for sin that you never deserved, would have been more than any of us could have handled.
And yet willingly you bore the physical agony, the psychological torment, the guilt that was truly ours. We thank you that you saw this was the very purpose of your coming. We thank you that you saw glory rather than shame in following through with this plan.
And we bow in reverent worship to the Father who glorified his name once and again.
May we never lose sight of the cross and all that it means for our salvation.
To God be the glory great things he has done.
Amen.
On mission with Jesus – John 12:26
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.
The Gospel of John does not include a precise version of the Great Commission. There is no “Go into all the world” or “Go and make disciples,” but this verse offers and interesting take on the subject.
The section of John 12 starts with some Greeks wanting to see Jesus. In all likelihood these are Gentiles and not simply Greek-speaking Jews who happened to be in Jerusalem. They were probably “God-fearers” as believing Gentiles were sometimes called. The early church drew many from this number as the gospel began to go out among the nations.
The verse in question, however, does not so much tell us to go as to follow. If we want to serve Jesus we need to follow him. Moreover, we need to follow him wherever he goes.
I would contend that wherever we might sense that people need Jesus, he is present there already. Go where we might, we are not going to flee from his presence. If our mission takes us to a faraway land, across the country or across the street, when we get there, we will find that Jesus is there already.
Serving Jesus means to go in some sense of the word, but it is going with Jesus or going where he has gone before. The Father will honor those who serve Christ in this fashion, but for right now, Jesus is waiting for us to follow.
John 11 – Verse by Verse
The raising of Lazarus is the seventh and final sign in the first section of the Gospel of John. With it Jesus proclaims himself to be the resurrection and the life.
Here is a link to the livestream video.
Central Reflections 