Good morning,
Praise the Lord for this new day. He blessed us with a beautiful weekend of rest, renewal, worship and witness. We have a young woman in the church who reminds me from time to time, "I get to serve the Lord". Indeed we get to worship the Lord. One of the readings for yesterday was taken from John 12: 20 ff.
Our world is mesmerized by celebrities. We want to know what they wear, eat, do on vacation, whom they are marrying or divorcing. Maybe it's because we sometimes think celebrities are almost superhero. Many people go out of their way to get up close and personal with someone “famous.”
That’s what we see here in John 12:20-26. In this text Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. He had just raised his friend Lazarus from the dead. We read in verse 20 that some Greeks who were on their way to worship at the Feast came to Philip with a request, wanting to see Jesus. Philip told Andrew about the request, then both Philip and Andrew went to their Master with the request. Jesus did not give an outright answer, but He responded in a way that was much more significant than that. “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.”
What Jesus meant was that the appropriate time had come for him to fulfill His mission. It was the opportune time because now the world (symbolized by the word “Greeks”) were ready to see him. Then in verse 24 He went on to say, “I tell you the truth…” (By the way, when Jesus says this you better be paying attention.) “…unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains alone. . But if it dies, it produces many seeds.” A self-centered life, a self-seeking life, a selfish life is a lonely life. The Lord gave dire warning here that there is loneliness in selfishness. The man or woman who live immersed only in his or her own interests, ploys, plans, and pleasures are miserable in their selfishness.
Jesus made a profound statement about Himself and His purpose in using the illustration about the kernel of wheat. Unless His own body were to fall to the ground and die (and be buried) there is no way there will be a harvest. Unless He went to the cross, what these Greeks really needed could never be attained. His death produces a harvest of life, hope and purpose for us! Glory comes through death.
Jesus then turned from talking about Himself to talking about you and I. “The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.”
Verse 24 is about Jesus. Only His death is necessary and sufficient for us to be a part of His harvest, of His life. Only through death was Jesus truly glorified. Jesus is calling us to a certain death as well, but not necessarily a physical death. He calls us to death to business as usual. We must be grains of wheat that fall to the ground. We do that by being a follower/servant of Jesus Christ. We need to see our lives from a different perspective. “The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” Greatness for us is not found in titles, fancy cars, a lucrative career, or a beautiful spouse. When Jesus said we are to “hate our lives” we need to understand what He was saying.
Jesus then turned from talking about Himself to talking about you and I. “The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.”
Verse 24 is about Jesus. Only His death is necessary and sufficient for us to be a part of His harvest, of His life. Only through death was Jesus truly glorified. Jesus is calling us to a certain death as well, but not necessarily a physical death. He calls us to death to business as usual. We must be grains of wheat that fall to the ground. We do that by being a follower/servant of Jesus Christ. We need to see our lives from a different perspective. “The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” Greatness for us is not found in titles, fancy cars, a lucrative career, or a beautiful spouse. When Jesus said we are to “hate our lives” we need to understand what He was saying.
On her way out yesterday, after worship, one woman who is very passionate about Christ shook me up by saying, "What does Jesus mean, when He says that one does need to hate his a her life?" He was NOT saying that we must have a literal, mean hate, despising our lives. Jesus was using a Hebraic expression that means “love less”. We are to keep our lives here in the right perspective. Our relationship to him is far more important than anything else. How do you find greatness or celebrity status in this world? We do this by becoming a servant. Verse 26 says “whoever serves me”. Those who love their lives think servanthood is beyond them. “There’s just things I’m not willing to do because I’m afraid of what people will think of me. I’m afraid it’s beyond me” — this is the attitude of those who loves their lives too much. A servant wants to serve. He or she wants to follow where Jesus would serve.
Unless a grain of wheat is buried in the ground, dead to the world, it is never any more than a grain of wheat. But if it is buried, it sprouts and reproduces itself many times over. In the same way, anyone who holds on to life just as it is destroys that life. By letting go, reckless in your love, you’ll have it forever, real and eternal.”
It takes broken soil to produce a crop, broken clouds to produce rain, broken grain to give bread and broken bread to give strength. It was a broken perfume box that gave off a fragrance one day in the life of Jesus. Our Lord specializes in using broken things, broken lives, broken vessels. He makes something beautiful out of the brokenness of our lives.
It takes broken soil to produce a crop, broken clouds to produce rain, broken grain to give bread and broken bread to give strength. It was a broken perfume box that gave off a fragrance one day in the life of Jesus. Our Lord specializes in using broken things, broken lives, broken vessels. He makes something beautiful out of the brokenness of our lives.
Blessed be His Name.
In Christ,
Brown
Friday March 30, 2012
Television Outreach
Time Warner Cable Channel 4
Time 7:00 PM
Saturday Evening Worship Service:
Location: First United Methodist Church
53 McKinley Avenue
Endicott, NY
Sponsored by: Union Center United Methodist Church
Time: 6:00 PM gathering for Coffee Fellowship
6:30 PM Worship Service
Date: Saturday, March 31, 2012
The Binghamton House of Prayer team will lead in music and Word.
"The Binhamton House of Prayer" is an Interdenominational and inernational ministry of prayer that is engaged in prayer for our region. This group meets weekly for prayer ministry.
There will be a very special time for prayer for healing and blessing.
Special Music by Laureen Naik
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