Jesus' Strange Glory

Okay, good morning. It's good to see you. I trust you've had a good week and it's wonderful to look at God's Word again together.

If you don't know me, my name is Kevin and I'm one of the leaders here, I guess.

Now, over the last four weeks, we've been journeying through the Gospels and we've been looking at this person, the Lord Jesus Christ.

And we've been asking the question, who is this man?

Who is this man that turned the world upside down?

This man that turned people's lives upside down?

Who is this man that even still today, thousands of years later, has turned billions of people's worlds upside down?

And so we've been going through the Gospels and looking at how Jesus across the centuries, in every culture, every corner of the world, Jesus has had this remarkable impact.

Who is this man?

Now, when you read the Gospels, especially Mark's Gospel and John's Gospel, about halfway through, the narrative takes a sharp turn.

And what happens is that in the first half of these Gospels, the Gospel writers are answering the question, who is this man?

But then it changes about halfway and they start to ask the question, who is this king?

And we see this in John chapter 11 and Mark chapter 8, as the narrative starts to change and it focuses on the cross.

John 11 · chapter mention Mark 8 · chapter mention

And so we as a church are on this eight-week journey, going through the Gospels, making our way towards Easter.

And we're going to follow the journey of the Gospels.

And so today we're asking the question, not so much who was this man, but who is this king?

Who is King Jesus?

And so today we start off in John chapter 12, and we're going to look at Jesus' strange glory.

John 12 · chapter mention

Jesus' unusual glory.

Now, the passage of Scripture that we read is a difficult passage.

And I want to ask you to really gauge and think about it.

It's a passage that in some ways requires some maturity to think about.

It's not an easy passage.

I'm going to try my best to not make it too complicated.

And I'm going to try and keep it simple.

But it's a passage that requires us to really think about it.

Okay?

So are you ready for that?

Okay.

Great.

Just the three of us.

But okay.

Well, I'm going to pray for us.

I'm going to ask God to speak to us from His Word, and then let's dive in.

So won't you join me in prayer?

Father God, there's no one like you.

You're real, and you're live, and you're living.

And you speak to us from your Word.

And God, today as we look at this difficult passage, won't you be here in power?

Won't you be here by your presence?

Won't you open up your Word to us and open up our hearts to see you?

God, today at the end of this sermon, we don't just want more information about you.

We want to have met you and encountered you.

God, whether in a complex way and a simple way, won't you help us to meet you in your Word this morning?

So Holy Spirit, I ask you to be here.

Take the words of these pages and apply them to our hearts.

Help us to see you in reality.

Won't you bless the preaching of your Word, we pray.

In your name, amen.

Amen.

Okay.

So we read John chapter 12.

John 12 · chapter mention

Now, just before the context, John chapter 11 actually starts off with this.

John 11 · chapter mention

Right at the end, it says this.

Now, the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and many went up from the country to Jerusalem before the Passover.

So remember, the Passover is the feast that is celebrated as the Jewish men and women remembered God's amazing grace to them in the nation of Egypt.

God delivered His people, saved His people by the blood of the Lamb.

The fact that innocent lambs died in their place, that they could be set free from Egypt and from slavery and become free men and women.

By the blood of the Lamb, these men and women were set free, and so every year they celebrate Passover as a remembrance, as a reminder of their liberation at the expense of somebody else.

And John is getting our attention here.

He's saying Jesus is about to go to the cross, but note the fact that the cross is like the ultimate Passover.

Jesus dies in the place so that we can be free.

And then go to verse 20, and it says this.

Now, among those who went up to worship at the Passover feast were some Greeks.

Okay, so these are Gentiles.

They're not Jewish men and women.

They are possibly some converts that have become converted to Judaism.

And it says, these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and they asked him, saying, Sir, we want to see Jesus.

Now, it's well known that at the time of this, there were a bunch of Gentiles, non-Jewish men and women,

Greek-speaking Gentiles, that had become disillusioned with the Greek gods.

They had become disillusioned with the fact that the Greek deities, there were so many of them.

There was a god of agriculture, a god of money, a god of the family, a god of fertility.

And they kind of thought, there are all these gods, but who's the one supreme god?

Surely there must be one god that is god of all these gods.

And so something of Judaism attracted them.

The fact that Judaism is monotheistic.

There's one true god, says Deuteronomy chapter 6.

Deuteronomy 6 · chapter mention

And so a bunch of them are attracted to Judaism.

But secondly, they disillusioned because the Greek gods, it was religion, but it had no bearing on their everyday life.

Yeah, they went to the temple, and they worshipped, and they sacrificed, and they brought their money.

But actually, it didn't tell you how to live.

It had no bearing on morality, or ethics, or it didn't instruct you on your everyday life.

But Judaism, actually, the nature of who God is, had a huge impact on how you live your life from day to day.

And so a bunch of these spiritual seekers convert to Judaism in search of the one true God,

and the God that's actually going to speak into their everyday life.

And now they encounter Jesus.

They've heard about this man called Jesus.

And they're wondering, is this the Messiah?

Is this the king that the prophets have been speaking about for hundreds of years?

Is this the one that we've been waiting for?

And so they come to Philip, who was from a Greek-speaking area, and they say to him,

We want to have a meeting with Jesus.

Can you help us meet Jesus?

Now, what are they really saying here?

They're saying, Jesus, we've heard about you.

We've heard about the good things that you've done.

Some people say you're a good moral teacher.

Some people say you're an excellent man.

Some people say maybe you're even divine.

Maybe you're the Son of God.

We want to know who you really are.

Jesus, if you're the king that for centuries we've been waiting for, show us your glory.

Show us your glory.

And friends, if you're wondering about that question, Jesus, who are you?

You're in a great place.

It's a question every one of us need to ask.

Every human being needs to ask this question.

Who is Jesus of Nazareth?

And is he really who he said he is?

You're in the right place to ask that.

And Jesus is going to answer their question, but he's going to do it in the most unusual way.

The way that nobody expected him to.

Now, before we get there, think about this.

They've heard that Jesus is possibly a king.

He's maybe the Messiah we've been waiting for.

Now, every king, every queen, every monarch knows that part of being royal is the display of your glory.

You've got to somehow let people know that you're a king.

What's the point in being a king if nobody knows you're a king?

Even the most benevolent kings, even the most humble monarchs use their position and their power to serve their people.

That's part of what it means to be a king.

You have position.

You have power.

You have glory.

That's what comes with the job.

That's what it means to be a king.

And so this is what the nation of Israel are waiting for.

The anticipation of the Messiah is boiling.

Israel's redeeming king is coming to rescue them from the oppression of the Romans.

Someone who would overthrow their enemies and restore Israel to their former glory.

All of Israel, those that were Jewish by race and those that have converted to Judaism, are waiting for the coming king.

He is going to rescue and restore Israel and restore it to its former glory.

And you know what?

In our hearts, we all long for a king like that.

In our hearts, every one of us long for a king that will set us free.

Long for a king that will make our lives more comfortable.

Long for a king that will deliver us and make our lives more convenient.

A king that will set us free.

And so here come these spiritual seekers.

They want to find out if Jesus really is the king.

And so what does Jesus say?

He says, verse 23 I think it is.

He says,

The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

Here it is after all the waiting.

All the anticipation.

All the wondering.

All the scrutinizing.

After three years of Jesus going around saying,

Repent for the kingdom of God is near.

Finally Jesus says,

Now is the time.

It's here.

The time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

To reveal His glory.

And the disciples must have been thinking,

It's about time.

Finally, we left our family business.

We left the tax office.

When other disciples abandoned Jesus and left Him,

we stuck with Him through thick and thin.

In the good times, in the difficult times,

we believed in Jesus.

Now is the time.

Jesus is going to finally let everyone know He's the king.

It's payday.

Right?

We've sacrificed lots for Jesus.

Now it's payday.

We're going to finally be proved we were right to believe in Jesus.

Jesus says,

It's here.

Now has the time come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

Glorified.

But then Jesus says the most anticlimactic,

the most disappointing things,

I think, in the entire gospel.

He says,

Now is the time for the Son of Man to be glorified.

And then what does He say?

Unless a grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies,

it remains alone.

But if it dies,

it bears much fruit.

Verse 27.

Now my soul is troubled.

And what shall I say?

Father, save me from this hour?

No.

For this very purpose,

I have come to this hour.

Father, glorify Your name.

Friends,

one of the strangest things about this king,

about King Jesus,

is that Jesus is unequivocal about the fact

that His moment of glory,

the high point of His life,

the moment, in fact,

His whole life was moving towards

is actually in one and the same time

His moment of greatest shame.

It's His moment of death.

It's the moment He was hung on the cross

as a criminal and crucified

and left there to die.

J.C. Ryle says it like this.

The Lord Jesus Christ would have us know

that He came not to wear a crown,

but to bear a cross.

He came not to live a life of honor,

ease and magnificence,

but to die a shameful and a dishonored death.

And the kingdom He set up

was to begin not with a coronation,

but with a crucifixion.

The glory of His kingdom

was to rise not from victories with the sword,

not accumulated treasures of gold and silver,

but from the death of its king.

This morning, I want to give us,

there's lots of reasons

why the cross is Christ's moment of glory.

I want to give us just three,

actually four reasons

why the cross is Christ's moment of glory.

Okay?

Why this fateful Friday afternoon,

the day of Christ's excruciating death,

the day when the whole world turned dark,

the day when the world seemed to be rocked

to its very core,

was actually at one and the same time

the most tragic day in the history of the world,

but also the most glorious.

Okay?

A couple of reasons.

First thing is this.

The cross of Christ gloriously reveals

the perfect nature and the character of God.

Okay?

It reveals who God really is.

Remember a few weeks ago,

we looked at Psalm 115 and says this.

It starts off saying,

not to us, O God,

not to us,

but to your name give the glory.

Do you remember that?

Okay?

And we asked the question,

what is the glory of God?

And what does it mean that God glorifies His name?

And the answer we came up with is,

the glory of God is the totality

of all of God's divine attributes.

So God's holiness and His justice,

His mercy and His grace,

His sovereignty and His patience,

all of God's attributes together

is like a gigantic multifaceted diamond,

and every one of His characteristics

is like a facet of this diamond

that reveals who He is.

Okay?

And then we said that to glorify God

is to reveal or to remove the cover

that shrouds His glory.

It's like putting the multifaceted nature

and the character of God on display,

making it visible for people to see.

Okay?

That's what it means to glorify God.

So for instance,

you glorify God when,

because of the gospel

and what God's done in your heart,

you forgive somebody that's really hurt you,

someone's really wronged you,

and you forgive them.

Why?

Because in a way you're making visible,

you're revealing,

displaying the infinite,

forgiveness of God,

that because of what Christ has done

for you on the cross,

you can forgive those around you.

Or another example,

you forgive God,

you glorify God

when you run a marathon,

right,

to borrow from my friend,

in such a way

that it says to those around you,

Christ is more precious to me

than the gold or the silver

that I might win.

When you run in such a way

that says whether I do well

or I do badly,

Christ is precious in my life.

That glorifies God.

You're making visible

the infinite,

perfect nature

and the character of God.

Does that make sense?

You tracking?

Sort of?

Okay, great.

Now,

Jesus says this,

the hour has come

for the Son of Man

to be glorified.

Now is the hour coming

for you to really see me

for who I am.

Now is coming

my glory,

my perfect nature

and character

that has been hidden

throughout the ages.

Now you're going to see me

for who I really am.

Friends,

how is Christ's excruciating

death on the cross,

how does that reveal

who Christ is?

Well,

think about this.

It reveals that Jesus

is sovereign

over everything

in the world.

Christ is supremely sovereign.

Think about how

for hundreds of years

God has been speaking

through his prophets

and he's been saying

to them,

the hour is coming

when I will send

my deliverer,

I will send my rescuer,

he will save his people,

he will save them

from their enemies

out there

but as we heard

last week

also from the enemies

inside,

God had been speaking

and saying

I will send my rescuer

to save my people

and 700 years earlier

God sent a specific prophet

called Isaiah

and God had promised

that this deliverer

would come

not as a king

who destroys his enemies

but as a suffering servant.

God promised

I will send my Messiah,

my deliverer,

he will be familiar

with pain and suffering.

He will be despised

and rejected.

He will be one

that men and women

scoff at

and ridicule.

In fact,

my deliverer will come

and he will be pierced

for the transgressions

of his people.

And then Isaiah said

he will stand trial

but during his trial

he will remain silent.

He won't argue

with the unfair judgment

that's brought upon him.

And John tells us

that Isaiah said

these things

because he saw

the glory of God,

he saw who God was.

You see friends,

Jesus Christ didn't die

because Pontius Pilate

had career ambitions,

he didn't want to get

on the wrong side

of the Romans

and so he thought

I better please the Romans.

No, of course it happened,

that's not why Jesus died.

Jesus didn't die

because Judas Iscariot

betrayed him

for 30 pieces of silver.

Jesus Christ didn't die

because the Jews

were jealous of him

and handed him over

to Pontius Pilate.

All those things happened

but those were simply

tools in the hands

of a sovereign God.

the God who had chosen

before the creation

of the world

that his son would die

on the cross

to save his people.

Jesus said this

in John chapter 10.

John 10 · chapter mention

He said,

I am the good shepherd.

I lay down my life

for my sheep.

No one takes my life

from me.

I lay it down

of my own accord.

I have authority

to lay it down

and I have authority

to take it up again.

Friends,

the cross of Christ

reveals to us

that Jesus Christ

is sovereign

over everything

even over wickedness

and great evil.

Think about how

the cross reveals to us

the holiness of God,

the justice of God.

Look at verse 27

with me.

Jesus says this.

He says,

Now my soul

is troubled.

Why was Jesus

so troubled?

Why was Jesus

so agitated

before the cross?

Is it because

he's seen

what the Romans

do to people

when they crucify them

and he can't bear

to face the pain?

He thinks,

That's going to be

so painful

I can't bear it.

Is that why

Jesus is agitated?

No, of course not.

If that's the reason,

then many martyrs

face their death

better than Jesus.

Friends,

the reason why

Jesus' soul

is so troubled

is because

not merely

the excruciating pain

he's about to face,

but because

the full

and the final

judgment of God,

the wrath of God

is for all the world.

the final wrath

of God

at the sins

of those

that would believe

in him

is about to be

put on his shoulders,

is about to be

poured into the depths

of his soul.

In a sense,

Christ is about

to drink

the very worst

of hell itself.

And the reason

why Jesus would do this

is because

this is the only way

that a perfectly

holy

and righteous

God

could welcome

unholy

and unrighteous

people like me

and like you

into his family.

Jesus is about

to do that

for us.

The cross

reveals the holiness

of God,

the righteousness

of God,

the perfection

of God.

Friends,

the cross

demonstrates

God's passion

for his holiness.

God is so holy

and so set apart

that he cannot

even tolerate

even an ounce

of sin

in his presence.

And so he

utterly

and totally

dealt

and destroyed

sin

by dealing

with Christ

on the cross.

Friends,

think about

how the cross

demonstrates

the mercy

of God.

That though

we don't

deserve it,

God welcomes

us into his

family and doesn't

give us what we

deserve but gave

it to Christ

instead.

The apostle

Paul writes,

he says,

though we were

dead in our sins

following the

ways of this

world,

though we were

slaves to our

sin,

because of God

being rich

in mercy,

because of his

great love for us,

even when we were

dead in our sins,

God made us alive

together.

Think about how

the cross reveals

the profound

love of God.

That God,

because he,

Jesus loved God

the Father,

he loved his

glory,

he loved you

and I,

he loved his

creation that he

made,

and he saw

that we were

wayward and

gone and so

lost that we

couldn't even

find our way

back to God,

he went and

he died for us.

Romans says

this,

he says,

scarcely will

someone die for

someone else.

Not very often

will someone say,

hey, I'll die in

your place,

but maybe if you

meet a very

good man,

a very righteous

man,

maybe if you

meet a very

honorable man

and you're

really humble,

you'll lay down

your life for

that person.

But God so

loves us that

this,

while we were

sinners,

while we were

enemies of God,

while we had

given God the

middle finger,

God sent his

son to die for

us.

Friends,

think about how

the cross reveals

the profound

love of God

for us.

Friends,

the cross of

Jesus is not

just a good

example to

show us how

to live,

not just to

teach us to

forgive those

that have

hurt us or

how to turn

the other

cheek.

It does all

those things,

but more than

this,

the cross reveals

to us the

perfect nature and

the character of

Jesus.

Jesus says,

now is the time

that you're going

to see me for

who I am.

Now is the time

that I'm going

to be glorified.

Now is the time

you're going to

see me for who

I really am.

Now is the time

that you'll get

to know me as

God.

Friends,

for hundreds

of years God

had been speaking

to his people

through the

prophets,

through the

angels,

through signs

and wonders,

through the

temple,

through the

priests,

and in all

those moments

he was showing

them just a

glimpse of his

glory.

He was showing

them just a

tiny percentage

of who he was.

But here,

fully and finally,

in a far more

dramatic way than

had ever been

seen before,

as Jesus hung on

the cross,

God says,

this is who I

am.

I'm the

sovereign God,

I'm sovereign

over everything.

I'm the God

of profound

mercy.

I'm the God

who is holy

and just.

I'm the God

of profound

love.

Friends,

if you want

to know God,

you want to

know who

Jesus really

is,

you understand

who this

God is,

you have to

find him at

the cross.

Don't just

come to him

as an example.

Don't just

come to him

as a martyr,

as a good

man who was

a victim of

his times.

You have to

come to the

one who

said,

for this

purpose I

was born.

I came

for this

hour.

You have

to find

him at

the cross.

Okay,

so first

reason,

how does

the cross

glorify

Jesus?

It shows

us who

he really

is.

Second

reason is

this,

that's the

longest

one.

Second

reason is

this,

the cross

reveals the

power of

God,

the profound

power of

God to

change lives.

Now

remember,

who is it

that comes

to Jesus,

that provokes

Jesus to

make this

dramatic

statement?

Who comes

to him and

says,

we want

to see

you?

It's the

Greeks,

right?

It's the

Gentiles.

It's not

the Jewish

people,

it's the

Gentiles.

And where

are they?

They're in

Jerusalem.

They've come

to Jerusalem

because they

want to

worship.

They've come

for the

Passover

festival.

Now,

many of us

will know

that the

Gentiles

were able

to come

to Jerusalem,

they were

able to go

to the

temple,

but they

could only

remain on

the outside

of the

temple.

They

couldn't

go to

the

inner

court.

There's

two

courts,

there's

the

inner

court

for

the

Jews,

and

then

there's

the

outer

court

where

the

Gentiles

had to

remain.

Now,

some of

the

Gentiles,

if they

had fully

converted

and been

circumcised

and gone

through all

the things,

some of

them could

have gone

to the

inner

court,

but for

most of

them,

the Gentiles

had to

remain on

the

outer

court,

and there's

actually a

wall that

divides the

Jews from

the

Gentiles.

And in

Jesus'

day,

there are

big signs

on the

wall that

say,

stay out,

no Gentiles

allowed in

the inner

court.

Okay?

And of

course,

it wasn't

just in

the temple.

For

centuries,

Jews and

Gentiles

didn't get

along.

They

wouldn't

eat

together.

The Jews

were meant

to be a

light to

the Gentiles,

to welcome

them in,

and the

Gentiles

should have

respected

the Jews.

They're both

to blame.

But for

centuries,

they've

been at

each other.

They

wouldn't

eat in

each

other's

houses.

They

wouldn't

share a

meal

together.

They

wouldn't

cross the

door,

the

threstle

of the

door,

to go

into

each

other's

houses.

Certainly

wouldn't

be in

partnership

and business

together.

And so

here the

Jews and

Gentiles

don't get

along.

But what

we read

is just a

few chapters

later in

Acts chapter

Acts 10 · chapter mention

10,

Peter,

a Jew,

goes and

has a meal

with a

Gentile.

He goes

inside his

home.

They break

bread together.

They worship

together.

The Holy

Spirit falls

on both

of them

and they

end up

praising God

together.

And later

on the

apostle Paul

writes to a

bunch of

Gentiles and

he says,

remember how

just formerly

you were called

the uncircumcision

by those who

regard themselves

as circumcision.

You were called

dogs and

inferior by those

who recognize

themselves as

superior.

But now,

he says,

in Christ

Jesus,

you who were

once inferior,

you who were

once far off,

you who were

once regarded

as second

class,

now you've

been brought

near,

how?

By the

blood of

Christ on

the cross.

For Christ

is our

peace.

He has

broken down

the dividing

wall of

hostility and

he has created

in himself one

new man out

of the two,

thus making

peace.

Friends,

for the very

first time in

the history of

the world,

here can both

Jew and

Gentile,

slave and

free,

rich and

poor,

educated and

uneducated,

male and

female,

worshipped God,

come together,

stand shoulder to

shoulder,

knowing that they

are equally

chosen in God,

equally loved by

God,

equally sinners

for whom Jesus

died on the

cross.

Why?

Because Christ,

by dying on the

cross,

broke the power

of sin and

self-centeredness

and self-righteousness

and now for the

first time both

Jews and

Gentiles,

Greeks and

slaves and

free and

rich and

poor and

educated and

uneducated have

a new identity

that says I'm

loved and

chosen by

God.

Friends,

the cross is at

one and the

same time the

most awful day

in the history of

the world but

it's the most

glorious day in

the history of

the world as

Jesus broke the

power of sin.

Jesus destroyed

our self-righteousness.

Jesus destroyed

our self-centeredness

in the lives of

his followers.

How else do you

explain what

happened to the

apostle Paul?

Right?

The apostle Paul,

he goes around and

he's destroying the

church.

Anyone even gives a

hint that maybe

they're a follower of

Jesus and he

arrests them, he

puts them in jail

and maybe some of

them even die.

And a few years

later, something

happens and his

life turns around.

And the church

starts to say,

we don't know what

happened to this

man but one thing

we know, the man

that was once

persecuting us is

now preaching the

very message he

tried to destroy.

How do you

explain that?

Except by the

power of the

gospel.

Paul writes this

and he says,

I'm not ashamed

of the gospel.

Why?

It is the power of

God for salvation

to change lives

around.

Back in Cape

Town where we

come from, one

of my very good

friends there, one

of my closest

friends, his name

is Gordon.

You call him

Gordy.

And Gordy became

a Christ follower

about eight or nine

years ago.

And before that

he was a heroin

addict.

He had been in

and out of rehab

many years and his

parents had tried

everything.

Anyway, one day he

comes out of rehab

and he says, this is

the time I'm going to

sort out my life.

This is the time I'm

a changed man.

I'm not going back

to drugs.

But it's not too

long before his

addictions get the

better of him.

And so one night he

calls his drug dealer

up and he says, hey,

I need you to help

me out.

He goes and he

meets his dealer and

he buys some heroin.

And he's driving

home and on the way

home he gets a vision

of Jesus Christ.

And he's so petrified

that he stops his car

at the next traffic

light, opens his

door, throws the

drugs on the floor,

calls his friend and

says, Garth,

something's happened

to me, I need to

speak to you.

Drives to Garth's

house.

Now Garth had just

become a Christian

about six months

before.

These two guys used

to party it up

together and now

Garth had just

become a Christian.

And so Gordy

phones him and

says, Garth, I need

to talk to you.

And he goes to

Garth's house and

Garth helps him,

explains what

happens and that

night Gordy

surrenders his life

to Jesus and he

becomes a follower

of Jesus.

About five days

later, Gordy comes

to our CG.

He's a brand new

Christian and he

looks a mess,

right?

He looks like a

gangster or something.

He's got a big

gold chain on,

he's got a cap

pulled down low

and he doesn't

look very happy

but something's

happened to him.

And he goes

through that CG

and he's talking

and he's contributing

and Gordy can't

say one sentence

without swearing.

He's just swearing

the whole night

long.

He goes outside

for smoke just

now and but he

kept on coming

back to Christ.

He kept on coming

back to the cross.

He kept on coming

to Jesus not just

as an example but

as a savior.

About a week

later, our CG

goes to a combined

church service.

A whole bunch of

churches in Cape Town

come together.

We have a combined

service.

And Gordy says to me,

he says, Kev,

there are people

here I thought I

would never see

in a church.

And I said to him,

hey bud, I think

they're thinking

the same thing

about you.

But you know

what?

His life turned

around.

His life changed.

And in one sense

there was a dramatic

change but another

sense it was a slow

change.

Sometimes Gordy

would phone me at

one o'clock in the

morning and say,

Kev, you need to

come to my house.

I'm about to do

something stupid.

I need someone to

pray with me.

He'd go there,

pray.

But he got into the

scriptures.

He loved God's word.

He kept coming to

Jesus as savior.

He kept coming to

the end of himself.

I remember at one

point I said, he was

struggling with

addiction.

And I said, Gordy,

you've just got to

get through one day.

He said, I've just

got to get through

one minute.

If I can get through

one minute at a time,

that's a victory.

But friends, today he's

an elder.

Or just a few months

before we left, he

became an elder in the

church.

He got married in

January.

He's a different

person.

Why?

Because the gospel is a

power that changes

lives.

The gospel is not just

the good news of how to

be a better person, how

to be a moral person, how

to be a better husband.

The gospel is a power

that changes our lives.

It changes us from the

inside.

God.

And Jesus came to do

that.

J.C.

Rowe said, Jesus Christ is

a complete Savior.

He doesn't merely take

away the guilt of a

believer's sin.

He does that, but he

does far more.

He breaks its power.

In Colossians chapter

Colossians 2 · chapter mention

2, Paul writes this.

He says, you were dead in

your transgressions and

sin.

Me, I was dead in my

sin.

But God made us alive

together with him.

He forgave us our sins and

he canceled the record of

debt that stood against

us.

And then he says this.

And God disarmed the

rulers and the authorities,

the spiritual rulers and

authorities.

God disarmed them by putting

them to open shame,

triumphing over them in

Christ on the cross.

Do you remember in Genesis

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3, Adam and Eve

fall, they sin, they

listen to the snake and

they don't listen to God.

And God speaks to Adam and

he says, hey, there's

consequences.

To Eve, there's

consequences.

consequences.

And then God says to the

snake, to Satan, he says,

you will forever torment

God's people.

Sin will always be close to

them.

But there is going to come a

son of man.

There is going to come a

human being and you will

bite his heel.

In other words, as a snake,

you will attack him.

And you might think you've

got the better of him.

But in the way that you

bite him, the way that you

torment him, he will crush

your head.

He will destroy you.

Friends, that's what

happened on the cross.

On the cross, Satan thought

he got the better of

Jesus.

He was like a python that

thought he had taken a

bite of Jesus.

He thought he got the

better of him.

He thought, now Jesus is

dead.

But in the very moment that

Christ was hanging on the

cross, Christ was crushing

the head of his enemy.

Friends, on the cross, Jesus

Christ accomplished the most

astounding victory when he

dethroned sin.

He overcome evil and he

defanged Satan.

Even though it looked like

sin and evil was getting

the better of him, Christ

was accomplishing a

victorious and magnificent

victory.

On the cross, as strange as

it seemed, as unusual as

it seemed, Jesus is about

to die and he cries out,

it is finished.

What is finished?

The atonement.

He's paid the price for our

sin, but also the victory

over his enemy.

It is finished.

First, friends, the cross

of Calvary is a strange

glory.

It's an obscure glory.

It looked like the most

shameful day in the history

of the world, but actually

in that moment, Christ was

achieving his greatest

victory.

How does the cross reveal

the glory of God?

It reveals the power of

Christ over his enemy.

Third thing is this.

It reveals Christ's radical

passion for his glory, for

his father's glory.

Look at verse 27 with me.

Verse 27 says,

Now my soul is troubled, and

what shall I say?

Father, save me from this

hour?

No, for this very purpose

I've come to this hour.

Father, glorify your name.

Throughout the gospel, Jesus

demonstrates radical devotion

and radical obedience to the

glory of his father.

Jesus is constantly saying

things like, I've come not to

do my will, but the will of my

father in heaven.

I've come not to please

myself, but my father in

heaven.

I have a job to do.

It's to fulfill the work of

my father.

Jesus is radically committed

to the glory of his heavenly

father.

Now contrast that with verse

42.

Look at what it says here.

It says,

Nevertheless, many of the

authorities believed in

Jesus.

So intellectually, they've done

the sums, they've done the

accounting.

They reckon there's more

evidence for Jesus than

against him.

They believed in him

intellectually.

Yet, 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.

Friends, it's not only kings

and queens, presidents and

governors that love to

display their glory.

This thirst for the praise of

men and to be made much of,

to be praised and honored is

actually something that lives

inside each one of us.

And it makes us make crazy

decisions, doesn't it?

It drives us to trade that

which is important for that

which is temporary.

It causes us to sell our

souls to the highest bidder.

And yet the irony is the one

man, the one human being who

deserved the glory, the one

human being who deserved to be

honored and glorified, the

creator of all things, including

the very people that were

nailing him to the cross, the

sovereign God before whom

every knee will bow, the one

man who deserved for men and

women to bow down before him,

in that moment lays aside his

glory so that you and I can be

welcomed into his glory.

Friends, if ever there was an

irony, this is it.

Christ, the king of glory, should

allow himself to be mocked and

scorned so that you and I can

enter his glory.

Jesus, the cross demonstrates

Christ's profound devotion to his

father's glory.

Fourth thing and finally is this.

Why is the cross glorious?

Why is the cross more glorious

than a crown?

Fourth thing is this.

It shows us the pattern of the

godly life, the Godward life.

Now, this is the final point.

In some ways, this grounds all this

theology into everyday life.

I want us to stay awake.

Okay, we're almost done.

The counter-cultural,

counter-intuitive message of the

cross is that what is true for

Christ our Savior and what the

apostles soon found was true for

them is actually true for every

follower of Jesus.

And that is that the way to glory

passes through Calvary.

The way to glory passes through

Calvary.

Jesus' hour revealed not only his

glory but also our way to glory.

Look at what happens in verse 24.

Jesus says this.

He says,

Truly, I say to you, unless a grain

of wheat falls to the ground and

dies, it remains alone.

But if it dies, it bears much fruit.

And that's the glory of the cross,

right?

From this moment on, Jesus is going

to die but it's going to yield a

harvest of millions of souls around

the world, right?

Jesus dies that we can live.

But then Jesus looks at each one of

us in the eye and he says,

What's true for me is also true for

you.

He says,

Whoever loves his life will lose it.

And whoever hates his life in this

world, comparatively speaking,

will actually find life.

If everyone serves me, he must

follow me.

Follow me where?

To Calvary, to the cross, to

Golgotha.

For where I am, there my servant will

be also.

But then he gives this hope.

He says,

Don't be disheartened.

Those who serve me, the Father

will honor them as well.

Friends, this is what differentiates

true faith in Christ from man-centered

religion.

In man-centered religion, we come to

Jesus to make our lives more

comfortable and convenient.

We come to Jesus to make our lives

better, to make our lives not as

difficult.

But true faith is when we come to

Jesus and say, Christ, I'll follow you.

I'll follow you to the cross.

Just as the Gentiles came to Jesus

and say, God, what can you add to

our religion to make our religion

better?

How can you help us?

So we do it so often.

But Jesus says that actually, the way

to true life, the way to glory, is to

follow him through Calvary.

Now, there's two implications of this

to think about.

The first one is this.

That which seems glorious is often

not.

Okay?

So think about this when you go to

work.

Think about this when you go to school

this week.

Think about this when you choose a

university.

Think about this when you choose a

career.

Think about this in the way that you

parent your children.

Think about this in the way that you

spend your money.

You seek that promotion.

You look for a job.

You look for a house.

That which seems most glorious is

often not.

But we started off talking about the

way that kings and queens love to be

honored.

Right?

They love to display their glory.

And a few minutes ago we said that's

not just true for kings and queens.

It's actually true for all of us.

All of us love to be glorified.

We love to win the marathons that people

can say we've done well.

Right?

And we all do that in our own way.

And the world has a way of seducing us

in such a way that that which seems

glorious and praiseworthy is

attractive.

But actually the upside down nature of

the gospel is that these things pass

away.

These things which look so promising

and promise us so much actually

often disappoint us.

Those things which promise us happiness

and contentment actually often leave

our souls empty and dry.

Isn't that what Jordan just said to us

a few minutes ago?

He said he was running marathons in

pursuit of glory.

But that didn't make me happy.

Friends, can I ask you this?

What are you going to spend your one and only

life in?

What are you going to invest your one and only

life in?

How are you going to spend your life?

Are you going to invest in that which will

puff you up?

Make you feel important?

Make you feel special for a day?

A year?

Maybe even a decade?

Friends, will you spend your life pursuing

what our culture says is honorable and

glorious and beautiful, but in the end

will just pass away like the grass?

Blow away like a cloud on a cloudy day.

Friends, why don't you invest your life in

that which is going to last?

It might not look glorious.

It might not look beautiful.

You might not get the praise of men and

women, but it's the thing that will

satisfy your soul and it's the thing

that will count.

Second thing is this.

That which seems hopeless is actually not.

The cross tells us that the things in life

which seem most hopeless, most redundant,

most meaningless and without value are

actually often the places where God

himself is.

The sickness of a child, the pain of being

retrenched, the hardship of financial

difficulty, the shame of persecution for

sharing your faith, being passed over for

promotion and everyone else in the office

gets promoted except you, the death of a

loved one, being diagnosed with an incurable

disease.

Friends, in these moments, if we come to

Christ and find our glory, if we come to

Christ as our hope for glory, often in these

places we'll drink deeply of the wonder and

the beauty and the majesty of God.

We'll find something about the glory of Christ

that you'll never find in high street.

In the bitterness of soul, we taste the

sweetest delights.

Friends, today Jesus calls each one of us to

follow him.

He calls us to follow him not in splendor,

not in ease, not in comfort and convenience.

He calls us to follow him to Calvary.

He calls us to follow him to the cross.

Jesus calls us to pick up our cross, to die to

self, to die to our sin, to crucify our pride.

But he says in that place you'll rise again to

new life.

In that place you'll discover a life you could

never have dreamt of, never imagined in your

wildest dreams.

Friends, the way of self-crucifixion seems

foolishness.

It seems meaningless.

It seems wasteful to our world and our

culture.

But friends, there's never lived a single

follower of Jesus who hasn't found that

dying to themselves and saying yes to Christ

has not been the way to meaningful life and

eternal life.

Friends, this is the way to glory.

This is the way to real life.

This is the way to eternal life.

This is the way to life that you were made

for.

Let's come to him now.

Let's pray together.

Let's pray together.

Let's pray together.

Jesus Christ, God, we so need you to see the

world the way it really is.

Let's pray together.

God, our culture would love to disciple us,

telling us to pursue our own glory, telling

us to pursue a life of comfort and ease, to seek our

own glory, God.

And yet, Jesus, as you told us, the way of self-glory

leads to death.

Father, as a church, won't you lead us to follow you?

Won't you help us, Christ, to become more like you, God?

Jesus, in our everyday life, God, won't you help us to fix our

eyes on you and in you to find our glory?

Jesus, help us to be like the apostle Paul who said, I had everything going for me.

I had the career, the reputation, the money, the wealth, the prestige, the honor, but all

those things I consider as rubbish compared to knowing Christ.

Jesus, won't you help us to live an upside-down life, contrary to the way of the world?

Lord.

Christ, we come to you now.

God, we confess that so often we live for ourselves.

Father, won't you forgive us?

God, don't just forgive us, won't you reorientate our lives?

Won't you bring us back to the cross?

Jesus, won't you lead us to the cross?

Lead us to that place where your love and your mercy, your holiness and your justice,

your sovereignty and your grace met.

Father, I pray, may we, as followers of Jesus, not march to the drumbeat of our culture and

of our time.

May we get a glimpse of who you are.

March to your drumbeat.

God, may we live differently because we've seen you, because we've seen your glory.

Friends, maybe just as we sing this next song, I want to encourage you to respond.

Won't you come to Jesus and in your own words, won't you ask him to open your eyes to see his glory?

In your own words, won't you come to him and confess how easily we live for our own glory?

In your own eyes, won't you ask him to lead you back to the cross?

Let's respond to him in worship.