Do you see him

So it's John 12, verse 37 to 50.

John 12:37–50

Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him,

so that the words spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled.

Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?

Therefore they could not believe, for again Isaiah said,

He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes and understand with their heart,

and turn, and I would heal them.

Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him.

Nevertheless, many, even of the authorities, believed in him,

but for fear of the Pharisees, they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue.

For they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.

And Jesus cried out and said,

Whoever believes in me, believes not in me, but in him who sent me.

And whoever sees me, sees him who sent me.

I have come into the world as light,

so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.

If anyone hears my words and does not keep them,

I do not judge him,

for I did not come to judge the world,

but to save the world.

The one who rejects me

and does not receive my words

has a judge.

The word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day,

for I have not spoken on my own authority,

but the Father who sent me

has himself given me a commandment,

what to say and what to speak.

And I know that his commandment is eternal life.

What I say, therefore,

I say as the Father has told me.

Well, good morning, everyone.

My name is Dave.

I'm one of the pastors here.

Would you please pray with me as we come to God's word?

Our Father in heaven,

have mercy on each one of us.

Give us eyes to see your Son,

that we might know you as you truly are.

In Jesus' name I pray.

Amen.

Why doesn't God make himself clearer?

If someone googled,

is God there,

and clicked on the top result,

they'd read this.

Stephen Hawking's final book says

there's no possibility

of God in our universe.

Someone looking for God will read that.

He says things like this.

I think the universe was spontaneously created

out of nothing,

according to the laws of science.

If you accept, as I do,

that the laws of nature are fixed,

then it doesn't take long to ask,

what role is there for God?

God.

This is the most publicly accepted

and popular belief

in the community we live in.

People live by this.

If one of the greatest minds

of our generation

can't see God,

it makes you wonder,

why doesn't God make himself clearer?

When I was an SRE teacher

at Katara High,

I won't forget

this one lesson in particular.

A year seven class,

a 12-year-old boy

challenged me.

If God is real,

then he can make a bird

land on that branch

out the window.

We're on the second story,

a tree outside.

He wasn't making a philosophical point.

He was challenging.

He wants a sign,

prove that God is there.

Now, I was really torn at this point.

On the one hand,

I had this arrogance

of a 12-year-old boy

and on the other hand,

the class was listening to him.

God's reputation was at stake.

What do I do?

I didn't want to put God to the test.

Instead, I read,

just the rest of the lesson,

I read Mark's Gospel

for as long as we got up to

to show them Jesus.

At the end of the lesson,

a few minutes before the bell,

a bird landed on that branch.

God was very gracious.

Why doesn't God make himself clearer

by doing things like that more often?

Greater things than a bird

just landing on a branch.

And I think we can ask this question

in our everyday experience as well.

We might often think,

consciously or not,

I just don't feel close to God.

Is he there?

Is he with me?

How can I feel so alone

if God really is with me?

When I go to church

and hear about God,

it just doesn't do much for me.

I feel the same temptation

to sin as last week.

I feel so weak.

Surely I'd feel stronger

if God was with me.

I have this life-changing decision to make

and it just doesn't seem like God is there

helping me decide.

Why doesn't God make himself clearer?

Here's the Apostle John's answer.

In the beginning

was the Word.

And the Word was with God

and the Word was God.

He was in the beginning

with God.

All things

were made through him

and without him

was not anything

made

that was made.

The true light

which gives light to everyone

was coming into the world.

He was in the world

and the world

was made through him

yet

the world

did not know him.

He came to say

he came to his own

and his own people

did not receive him.

But to all who did receive him

who believed in his name

he gave the right

to become

children of God.

And the Word became flesh

and dwelt among us.

And we have seen his glory.

Glory as of the only Son

from the Father

full of grace

and truth.

No one has ever seen God.

The only God

who is at the Father's side

he

has made him known.

If you see Jesus

you see God.

Like in a court case

John has given

his opening statement.

He has spent

12 chapters

laying out the evidence.

In our passage today

we come to a closing statement.

From chapter 13 onwards

Jesus teaches those

who believe in him

what it will mean

to follow him

to the cross.

And Gareth will help us

through the first section

of this next week.

So imagine

you're a member

of a jury

and you're about

to go off

to deliberate

over the evidence

and then give

your verdict.

is Jesus

the Christ

the Son of God?

Do you think

he is

impressive?

So impressive

that he is like

a bright light

and this rest of the world

is just in darkness.

so before we hear

the closing statement

let's remind ourselves

of what we've seen

so far.

You've seen

seven signs

and you've heard

Jesus accompanying

words which together

reveal who Jesus is.

So sign one

at the wedding

in Cana

Jesus creates

a ridiculous

amount of wine

just out of water.

and the twelve

disciples see this

they see his glory

and believe.

Jesus then says

he's going to create

a new temple

in just three days

where people

can come close

to God

and know him.

He says to Nicodemus

unless one is born again

he cannot see

the kingdom of God.

Sign two

Jesus tells

the Roman centurion

go

your son

will live.

The centurion

believed the word

that Jesus

spoke to him

and his son

who was sick

lived.

Sign three

by a pool

in Jerusalem

a man laid there

who had been sick

for 38 years.

Jesus said to him

get up

take your bed

and walk

and at once

the man was healed

and he took up

his bed

and walked.

He declared

to the authorities

truly truly

I say to you

whoever hears

my word

and believes

him who sent

me

has eternal

life.

He does not

come into judgment

but has passed

from death

to life.

Sign four

a crowd

of five thousand

men

followed

to hear

Jesus' words

and out of

five barley loaves

and two fish

he feeds

every single

one of them

they're full

they're stuffed

and then they

collect twelve

baskets of

leftovers

and Jesus

declares

I am the

bread of life

I am the

living bread

that came down

from heaven

if anyone

eats of this

bread

he will live

forever.

Sign five

while his

disciples

cross the sea

in a boat

about five

kilometers

of rowing

they see

Jesus

walking

on the

sea

and coming

towards

them

and they

are

frightened.

Sign six

a man

who was

born

blind

Jesus

spat

on the

ground

and made

mud

with the

saliva

then he

anointed

the man's

eyes

with the

mud

and said

to him

go and

wash

so he

went

and washed

and came

back

seeing

Jesus

declared

I am

the

light

of the

world

whoever

follows

me

will

not

walk

in

darkness

but

will

have

the

light

of

life

sign

seven

after

four

days

of

Lazarus

being

dead

and

wrapped

in

burial

cloth

in

the

tomb

at

the

mouth

of

the

tomb

Jesus

cries

out

in a

loud

voice

Lazarus

come

out

the

man

who

died

walked

out

Jesus

said to

Martha

I

am the

resurrection

and the

life

whoever

believes

in me

though

he die

yet

shall

he

live

and

everyone

who

lives

and

believes

in

me

shall

never

die

do

you

believe

this

you've

seen

the

signs

you've

heard

his

words

what's

your

verdict

here's

the

Jewish

people's

verdict

in

verse

37

though

he

had

done

so

many

so

great

signs

before

them

they

still

did

not

believe

in

him

the

descendants

of

Abraham

those

delivered

through

Moses

those

waiting

for the

promised

son

of

David

those

who

received

the

words

of

the

prophets

came

to

the

verdict

not

the

Christ

not

the

son

of

God

if

Jesus

is

the

real

deal

how

come

the

Jews

didn't

see

him

as

the

son

of

God

just

before

we

explore

John's

answer

to

this

question

quickly

notice

that

the

Jews

verdict

has

swung

drastically

and

really

quickly

something

has

changed

their

minds

just

just

hours

earlier

that

had a

public

celebration

welcoming

him

into

Jerusalem

crying

out

the

king

of

Israel

something

has

changed

in

those

few

hours

world

will

keep

it

for

eternal

life

a

Christ

who

invites

all

people

not just

Jews

all

people

everywhere

to come

to him

no he's

no longer

impressive

they didn't

like what

they saw

so we're

left with

the

question

how

come

the

Jews

didn't

see

Jesus

as

God

and

John

gives

two

main

answers

to

this

question

first

through

the

testimony

of

Isaiah

we can

see

that

they

were

blind

as

God

said

they

would

be

and

the

second

answer

is

many

Jews

did

believe

but

they

remained

silent

because

their

love

for

this

world

got

in

the

way

of

their

any

love

for

God

so

first

John

calls

the

prophet

Isaiah

onto

the

witness

stand

Lord

who

has

believed

what

he

heard

from

us

and

to

whom

has

the

arm

of

the

Lord

been

revealed

these

words

are

from

Isaiah

53

1

and

are

about

God's

chosen

suffering

servant

who

would

be

pierced

for

our

transgressions

so

that

God's

people

their

relationship

with

God

would

be

healed

the

rejection

of the

suffering

servant

was

always

what

God

said

would

happen

in

fact

under

God's

sovereign

hand

the

rejection

is the

very

means

by which

God

brings

about

his

plan

to

save

and

it

shows

the

utter

stubbornness

and

blindness

of

sinful

people

that

they

would

even

reject

the

one

who

suffers

in

their

place

to

save

them

the

unbelief

of the

Jews

is

exactly

what

God

said

would

happen

and

it

shouldn't

be

surprising

Israel

has

always

been

like

this

when

they

were

saved

from

Egypt

by

the

ten

plagues

through

Moses

revealing

the

powerful

saving

arm

of

the

Lord

brought

to

the

edge

of

the

promised

land

Moses

says

this

to

them

in

Deuteronomy

29

3-4

with

your

own

eyes

you

saw

those

great

trials

those

miraculous

signs

and

great

wonders

but

to

this

day

the

Lord

has

not

given

you

a

mind

that

understands

or

eyes

that

see

or

ears

that

hear

they've

always

been

like

this

people

are

always

like

this

and

it's

a

willful

blindness

and

inability

to

believe

you

might

be

objecting

how

can

people

be

saved

if

they

are

not

able

to

believe

it's

not

that

God

makes

seeing

people

blind

it's

that

he

leaves

people

in

their

willful

blindness

and

by

his

grace

alone

he

chooses

some

to

give

new

eyes

to

see

no

one

deserves

eyes

to

see

it's

our

own

sin

that

makes

us

blind

remember

Jesus

words

in

John

3

19

this

is

the

judgment

the

light

has

come

into

the

world

and

people

loved

the

darkness

rather

than

the

light

because

their

works

were

evil

mercy

he

saw

Jesus

glory

that

vision

in

chapter

6

of

God

high

and

exalted

on

his

throne

he

saw

Jesus

glory

Isaiah

53

he

saw

the

suffering

servant

he

saw

the

glory

the

Jews

blindness

to

Jesus

is

just

as

God

said

and

so

their

rejection

is

actually

even

more

confirmation

that

Jesus

really

is

the

Christ

God

said

this

would

be

the

case

their

rejection

is

more

confirmation

that

Jesus

really

is

the

Christ

the

Son

of

God

so

now

John

has

pointed

that

out

to

you

you

have

even

more

light

to

see

what

will

you

do

with

that

if

you

see

Jesus

you

see

God

the

second

answer

on the

other

hand

John

points

out

that

there

were

many

Jews

who

did

believe

in

Jesus

even

some

of

the

authorities

who

knew

their

scriptures

well

we

might

think

of

Nicodemus

and

Joseph

of

Arimathea

who

gave

Jesus

an

honorable

burial

they

did

believe

and

many

others

as

well

but

if

they

believed

why

didn't

they

say

so

why

weren't

they

public

about

it

the

reason

is

a

little

chilling

a

little

piercing

to

our

own

hearts

they

love

the

glory

the

praise

that

comes

from

people

more

than

the

praise

that

comes

from

God

it's

belonging

to

those

with

the

power

it's

having

a

recognized

place

and

position

in

the

community

that

was

more

important

than

belonging

to

God

they

feared

the

Pharisees

they

didn't

want

to

be

put

out

of

the

synagogue

they

wanted

to

keep

their

place

their

identity

their

relationships

more

than

they

wanted

to

have

God's

approval

and

his

welcome

his

praise

for

following

God's

son

I

think

we all

know

this

very

well

don't

we

I

think

it

hits

each

of

us

different

ways

it's

not

taking

any

step

that

would

threaten

your

position

in

the

people

that

you

belong

to

I'll

follow

Jesus

just

I

won't

take

any

step

that

threatens

my

place

in

that

people

group

I

think

we

know

that

very

well

I

do

it's

the

teenager

who

follows

Christ

as long

as it

doesn't

cost

them

anything

with

their

friends

at

school

they

do

whatever

it

takes

to

stay

in

the

group

it's

the

uni

student

who

follows

Christ

as long

as their

place

in the

group

is not

at

stake

it's

the

worker

who

goes

along

with

the

gossip

in

the

workplace

for

fear

of

their

own

reputation

it's

the

person

who

needs

constant

interest

from the

opposite

sex

to feel

affirmed

it's

the

class

clown

it's

the

know-it-all

it's

those

who

have

to

look

good

all

the

time

it's

the

career

obsessed

it's

even

the

preacher

who

cares

more

what

people

think

of

them

than

what

people

think

of

Christ

not

taking

any

step

that

would

threaten

your

position

in

the

people

you

belong

to

like

usual

we

settle

for

less

we

settle

for

a

fake

imitation

of

what

we're

truly

created

for

and

the

dangerous

thing

for

ourselves

is that

it

gets

in

the

way

of

belonging

to

God

and

knowing

his

love

and

his

rejoicing

over

us

gets

in the

way

of us

living

for

him

and

the

damaging

thing

to

God's

reputation

and

the

damaging

thing

to

others

being

able

to

see

God

through

us

is that

like the

Jews

it

undermines

our

witness

to

the

all

surpassing

goodness

of

belonging

to

Jesus

of

knowing

the

Father's

love

for

us

Jesus

has

promised

in

verse

26

if

anyone

serves

me

the

father

will

honour

him

well

done

good

and

faithful

servant

come

and share

in your

master's

happiness

praise

they

will be

good

words

to

hear

it's

not that you

shouldn't

seek praise

at all

just

seek the

right

praise

which

one

will you

seek

and

this

isn't a

small

issue

it's

because

of

everyone's

lack

of

love

for

the

praise

that

comes

from

God

that

Jesus

needed

to

die

if

anyone

was

going

to

live

it's

not a

small

issue

you

are

going

to

constantly

be

witnessing

to

everyone

around

you

which

one

you

think

is

more

desirable

which

one

you

think

is

worth

striving

for

God's

reputation

is

at

stake

others

seeing

Christ

through

you

so

that

they

might

have

life

in

God

is

at

stake

your

joy

and

salvation

in

seeing

Christ

is

greater

than

what

this

world

has

to

offer

is

at

stake

Jesus

isn't

exaggerating

when he

calls us

to

hate

our

life

in

this

world

well

done

good

and

faithful

servant

so

we may

question

why God

doesn't

make

himself

clearer

we

see

so

many

people

who

are

blind

to

Jesus

but

that's

as

God

said

it

would

be

and

we

see

others

who

believe

but

they

show

by

the

way

they

live

that

this

world

is

worth

having

more

than

God

and

so

Jesus

makes

a

final

public

tender

appeal

look

and see

and

receive

everlasting

life

whoever

believes

in me

believes

not in

me

but in

him

who

sent

me

and

whoever

sees

me

sees

him

who

sent

me

for

I

have

not

spoken

on

my

own

authority

but

the

father

who

sent

me

has

given

him

has

himself

given

me

a

commandment

what

to

say

and

what

to

speak

and

I

know

that

his

commandment

is

eternal

life

what

I

say

therefore

I

say

as

the

father

has

told

me

it

almost

sounds

like

Jesus

is

distancing

himself

from

his

message

don't

look

at

me

I'm

just

saying

what

I've

been

told

to

say

take

it

up

with

the

father

he's

not

ashamed

of

the

message

he

is

the

message

he's

not

ashamed

of

it

and

anyone

who

believes

receives

eternal

life

so

what's

he

pointing

out

here

Jesus

entire

ministry

all

this

time

he

has

been

serving

the

command

he

received

from

God

the

father

every

word

what

to

say

what

to

speak

the

father

himself

no

one

else

has

told

him

what

to

say

therefore

to

hear

Jesus

words

is

to

hear

the

father

to

believe

in

Jesus

is

to

believe

in

the

father

to