Wednesday 16 August 2023
- Bible Book:
- John
‘Very 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’. (v. 24)
Background
The way of life and worship of the Jewish people were deeply attractive to some beyond Judaism, and non-Jewish ‘God-fearers’ were welcome to worship in the Court of the Gentiles (or ‘nations’ – ie all nations other than Israel) in the Temple in Jerusalem.
The ‘Greeks’ here (v. 20) are Gentiles, probably ‘God-fearers’ since they’re in Jerusalem for the Passover festival. They approach Andrew and Phillip, two of Jesus' disciples with Greek names and so who probably speak Greek themselves, with their wish to ‘see Jesus’ (v. 21). This request triggers a pivotal announcement by Jesus: "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified" (v. 23).
The title Jesus uses for himself here is ‘the Son of Man’. In earlier usage (for example in Daniel 7:13-14) and in the other gospels, it is associated with the glory of a figure who, at the culmination of time and history, unites heaven and earth. Today’s reading keeps that sense of glory. But in addition, and uniquely, it emphasises not only the Son of Man as the one from God who is made flesh and whose glory is seen in human form (1:14), but also that this glory is seen in the humiliation of dying on the cross. It is the concept of 'glory transformed'. Jesus' incarnation, crucifixion, death and resurrection is like the seed that dies to bear much fruit. (v. 24).
Jesus then makes a challenging statement, formulated –as many of his sayings are – as a paradox. He says those who love their life lose it and those who hate their life in this world keep it for eternal life (v. 25). John’s word for world, 'kosmos', is ambivalent. It is the world which is closed off from God and rejects Jesus and his followers, who do not belong to it (17:16). However it is also the world that God nevertheless loves and sends his son to save (3:16-17). This means that Jesus’ subsequent demand – that those who serve him follow him – may appear complex: should this be into ‘the world’, or away from it?
To Ponder:
- Is the idea of ‘glory’ important for how you understand Jesus? In what ways?
- What sort of relationship with ‘the world’ do you think is involved in following Jesus, and why?