Lenten Devotion for 13 April 2011 Anno Domini

Lenten Devotion for 13 April 2011 Anno Domini 20. And there were certain Greeks among them that came up to worship at the feast:21 The same came therefore to Philip, which was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and desired him, saying, Sir, we would see Jesus. 22. Philip cometh and telleth Andrew: and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus.23 And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified.24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.25 He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.26 If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour. 27 Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour.28 Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.29 The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him. 30 Jesus answered and said, This voice came not because of me, but for your sakes.31 Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.33 This he said, signifying what death he should die.” (John 12:20-33) As we saw yesterday there are many different kinds of seekers of Christ: Herod out of vain curiosity without result, Lazarus out a casual interest which result in a burning conviction, and these Greeks who had already heard much of Him and the simple hearing could not satisfy – they must SEE Christ, just as you and I should hunger to do. “And there were certain Greeks among them that came up to worship at the feast: The same came therefore to Philip, which was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and desired him, saying, Sir, we would see Jesus. Philip cometh and telleth Andrew: and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus.” Unlike blind Bartemeus, or the little children (whom the disciples tried to discourage), these men came first to the disciples to gain access to Christ. In so doing, the disciples did not feel their privilege attacked and therefore made the meeting possible. Of course, it was not necessary to come through the disciples – the privilege of coming directly to Christ has always been an open opportunity to all. Jesus, on meeting these good inquirers, gave words that may have seemed strange to those who knew less than those about Christ for, even they, did not fully understand until after the glorification of Christ. “The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour. Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. Father, glorify thy name.” There is a great beauty here: regardless of all suffering and sorrow of the moments before His Passion, Christ has time and concern for all comers. The grain of corn (wheat) to which Christ refers is that of which our Bread of Life is made whole. He is our Bread of Life, and He is One. But He must fall into the earth and die so that newness of life may spring forth and multiply into much fruit. The Bread of our Communion is made of many hundreds (or even thousands) of grains, crushed and beaten down. Yet they come from the single Bread which came down from Heaven. All the saints of God, present, past and future, have part in the Bread of our Communion which is the full Body of Christ symbolized in the Bread. How reverently should we receive it at the time of Holy Communion. It represents the Body of Christ! We who follow Christ must follow all the Way, and we must bear the cross as we follow. This symbol of death is right and appropriate for us “for we die daily to self and live unto the Lord.” Except the old sinful self die, we cannot be born into the newness of life promised through Christ. Another point Christ is making with the Greeks (unfamiliar with prophecy) was that if they wanted to see Christ, they must see Him as the Crucified and Risen Christ - not simply as the worker of miracles! If we love our present life, how can we forbear its presumed pleasantries to die for the future life in Christ? If we are always WITH Christ, we must be willing to go every place and suffer every deprivation that He suffered in His journey. How can we resist the urge to weep at this line: “Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour.” Though His inward hurt is greater than human mind can fathom, and He is sorely troubled even at this moment of interview, He persists in doing that which is necessary and essential for our salvation. The voice of a Well-Beloved Son of His Father crying out as a little child, “Father save me from this Hour!” Yet, He does not allow this plea to override His will to obey! In da Vinci’s Last Supper, Christ is the central figure via ‘point-perspective.’ All the lines on the floor, ceiling and wall converge to a point of meeting in infinity directly behind the heart of Christ. If extended outward, they construct an infinite plane whose center is the heart of Christ. Christ Himself is depicted with His left hand reaching, palm upward, to receive the Bread of Life; but the right hand of action is extended palm down toward the inevitable cup of the wrath of God in sin. He would prefer (as we all would do) to live and forego this terrible death, but, nonetheless, He reaches to grasp the Cup of His Suffering. Can you see His Beauty and Strength of Love in this, my friend? I do not know if we ever shall be able to fully comprehend this one thing. Now, dear Soul, can you imagine the unimaginable pain and grief from the Father’s Throne at the Words of His dearly Beloved Son? “Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again. 29 The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him.” How can we read these lines without manly tears and womanly sorrow? How can we contemplate the great price paid for our salvation without deep contrition humble confession of all? “Jesus answered and said, This voice came not because of me, but for your sakes. Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. This he said, signifying what death he should die.” Just as the brazen serpent was lifted up in the wilderness for the healing of the people, so is Christ lifted up that we may look to Him for salvation from the curse of death brought on by the wicked serpent of the Garden. Look upon HIM!