Jesus's Final Public Plea

This morning as we come to God's Word, we're continuing on in the story of Jesus according to John.

So if you have your Bible with you, you can open it up to John chapter 12, verse 44.

John 12:44

John chapter 12, verse 44.

John 12:44

Let's just start by reading the first few verses here.

Then Jesus cried out,

Whoever believes in me does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me.

The one who looks at me is seeing the one who sent me.

I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.

The first thing that we want to consider this morning is when and where Jesus said this.

Notice that just before this, John has been the one doing the talking.

He's been explaining a little bit of what's going on.

And here in verse 44, John just kind of jumps right back into the story of Jesus with,

Then or now, Jesus cried out.

There doesn't seem to be a specific occasion to these words of Jesus.

But we know from earlier in the chapter that this takes place sometime between the triumphal entry.

And looking ahead, we can see that it happens just before the Last Supper in chapter 13.

And it seems from the way Jesus speaks and what he says that this is a public address.

Notice the language.

Jesus cried out.

That kind of fits with speaking to the crowds.

And then finally, we notice the kinds of things that Jesus is saying.

All of them are quite focused around believing in him and accepting his words.

So it's likely that Jesus is somewhere in Jerusalem, perhaps at the temple courts.

And it's quite possible that these are sort of Jesus' last words to the crowds, to the public,

before his betrayal and arrest.

So what does Jesus have to say to the people here in Jerusalem just a day or two before his hour comes?

What might be some of his last words to them?

Well, this is it right here in verse 44 down to 50.

And what may surprise us a little is that almost nothing that Jesus says here is really new.

If you've been following closely with John through this gospel,

you'll notice that he's pretty much said all this stuff already,

maybe a little bit different words.

But given that this is Jesus' maybe last opportunity to speak to the public,

to speak to the crowds like this,

we would do well to listen one more time.

It's often what's most important that rises to the surface when time is short.

So what will Jesus leave the crowds with in these last moments before his suffering comes?

Jesus starts by making one of his greatest claims,

a claim he's made before, but with different words.

Whoever believes in me does not believe in me only,

but in the one who sent me.

The one who looks at me is seeing the one who sent me.

We've heard Jesus talk a lot about the one who sent him,

and by now it's no secret who Jesus means.

I think we all know, but just to refresh our memories,

we can look back to chapter 10, verse 36.

Jesus said there,

What about the one who the Father set apart as his very own and sent into the world?

Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy?

Because I said I am God's Son.

So we know exactly who Jesus is talking about when he refers to the one who sent him.

He's talking about God, the Father, his Father.

But now look at what Jesus is claiming about himself and God, the one who sent him.

Whoever believes in me does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me.

The one who looks at me is seeing the one who sent me.

All the Jewish people of Jesus' day know that they are to have faith in God.

They know that they are to put their trust in God,

that they are to believe him, just like Abraham did all those years ago.

But now here is a man standing in front of them saying,

The one who believes in me believes in God.

The one who puts their faith in me puts their faith in God.

The one who trusts me trusts God.

This is a huge claim.

And Jesus is not just claiming to be an ambassador here.

I mean, look at what he follows this up with.

He says,

The one who sees me sees the one who sent me.

In other words,

The one who sees me, says Jesus,

sees God.

The one who looks at me, says Jesus,

is looking at God, the one who sent me.

Jesus is claiming to be much more than an ambassador,

much more than just a third-party representative.

And there's really only one way to make sense of his claim here,

and it's to recall what he said earlier about his relationship with the Father.

Think back to John 10, verse 30,

John 10:30

where he said,

I and the Father are one.

And then moments later,

at that same time,

in verse 37 of chapter 10,

he said,

Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father.

But if I do them,

even though you do not believe me,

believe the works that you may know and understand

that the Father is in me,

and I am in the Father.

Father,

what has Jesus been claiming?

Oneness with God.

He's been claiming that God is in him,

and that he is in God.

So much so that they are one.

So much so that Jesus,

the man,

can say back in John chapter 8, verse 58,

John 8:58

Before Abraham was born,

I am.

Taking up the very name of God

as his own.

A claim that only God can make,

and it wasn't blasphemy.

This is what Jesus is getting at here

in John chapter 12, verse 44.

John 12:44

It's as though he's saying,

I am so one with God, my Father,

that if you look at me,

you are looking at God,

the one who sent me.

If you are seeing me,

you are seeing him.

It's an amazing reality

that this man who walked among us,

when they saw him,

they saw God

walking among them.

And all of this is not really a surprise to us.

I mean,

John has told us this

right from the beginning of his gospel.

He explained where Jesus came from.

You'll remember those words.

John 1, 1,

In the beginning was the Word,

and the Word was with God,

and the Word was God.

And verse 14,

The Word became flesh,

and dwelt among us,

and we have seen his glory.

John told us right from the beginning

what Jesus is saying here now.

This is certainly no ordinary man

walking here,

speaking here,

among us.

He's not even just a special chosen man

like Noah,

or Abraham,

or Moses.

This is God here

among us,

with us,

in this man Jesus.

The divine Son of God.

Mysteriously,

he shares

the essence

of Yahweh,

the Lord.

somehow,

beyond our understanding,

he is a distinct person

from the Father,

and a full-blooded human being,

and at the same time,

is truly

the Lord.

Yahweh,

the one and only God.

the Apostle Paul said it this way

in his letter to

the church at Colossae.

In Colossians 2.9,

he said,

For in Christ,

all the fullness

of the deity

lives

in bodily form.

He said in

chapter 1,

verse 15

of that same letter,

the Son is the image

of the invisible God.

Hebrews 1,

Hebrews 1:3

verse 3,

the Son is the radiance

of God's glory

and the exact

representation

of his being.

This is what Jesus

is getting at

when he says,

The one who sees

me

sees

the one

who sent me.

He is in me.

I am in him.

We are one.

Let's come back

for a second

to Jesus'

first statement here.

The one who believes

in me

does not believe

in me only,

but in the one

who sent me.

It's not as though

God

and this man,

Jesus,

are somehow

at odds

with each other.

It's not as though

you can only put your faith

in one of them

at a time.

Some people

might be thinking,

well,

we either listen

to you,

Jesus,

or we listen

to God.

Jesus is saying,

that distinction

does not apply

in my case.

The one who listens

to me

listens to the one

who sent me.

The one who believes

in me

believes in God,

my Father,

who sent me.

By putting your faith

in me,

says Jesus,

you are putting

your faith

in the one

who sent me,

in God,

Yahweh,

the Creator.

this is the first

and greatest claim

of Jesus

in this moment

and it's something

he wants people

to know

before he goes

to his hour

of suffering.

Jesus doesn't

stop there,

however.

He has more

to say.

Verse 46,

I have come

into the world

as a light

that no one

who believes

in me

should stay

in darkness.

darkness.

Again,

this is something

Jesus has said

before.

He's already

claimed twice

publicly,

I am the light

of the world.

John introduced

Jesus back

at the beginning

of the gospel

as the light

of all mankind.

The true light,

the light that was

coming into the world

and we've talked

about how

Jesus does

what light does.

He dispels

the darkness.

He pushes

back the

ignorance.

He reveals

the truth

of how things

really are.

He exposes

the corruption

and the evil

in the lives

and hearts

of people.

And we've heard

quite a few times

about the condition

of people

in our world

generally,

how they hate

the light,

how they love

the darkness

and only a few

it seems

come into the light.

Well here Jesus

comes back

to this familiar

metaphor yet again.

I have come

into the world

as a light

so that no one

who believes in me

should remain

in darkness.

Let's think

about these words.

What is the condition

of you and me

before Jesus,

the light,

comes into the world?

I mean Jesus,

he tells us right here

why he came

as light

into the world

so that we

should not

or would not

remain in darkness.

There's an implication

here.

Without Jesus,

who is the light

that came into the world,

what would be

our situation?

We'd be stuck

in darkness.

And darkness here

mainly refers

to ignorance,

to not knowing

the truth

that we need

to know.

Imagine

for a moment

that you are

working in the mines

and you've gone

down this mine

shaft

deep into the earth.

Let's just say

it's to inspect

a piece of

failed equipment

that you're

an expert in

and you're down

there at the end

of an elaborate

network of tunnels

all by yourself

working on this thing

when all of a sudden

the ground

begins to shake

and the lights

go out.

Whatever was

generating electricity

for your lights

fails

as part of this

large network

collapses.

You find yourself

trapped

in a rather

small end

of this tunnel.

And by the time

you manage

to dig your way

through the debris

to the next

open section

of tunnel,

your headlamp

is dead.

your phone

is dead.

And there's

nothing you can do

but grope around

in the dark.

And you feel

and you hunt

and you crawl

around on all

fours for hours

but no matter

how hard you try

you can't find

a way out.

You have no idea

which way is north,

south,

east,

west.

You hear nothing.

You see nothing.

You can't even see

your hand right in

front of your face.

It's pitch black

because there is

no light.

Could it be

that all the exits

are blocked

by the rubble

from the cave-in

and that you'll

never find a way

of escape?

Or could it be

that after days

of searching

you still haven't

found the one

open passageway

that leads back

to the surface?

This is a picture.

This is a parable

of our situation

in this world.

We are stuck

in darkness,

lost,

because of our

sins,

because of our

rebellion against

God.

And without the

light of Christ

to show us

the way out,

we will remain

there.

We will never

find the way out.

We will never

escape.

We will remain

there in the

darkness until

the day that we

perish.

Christ Jesus

has come

to give us

the light,

to give us

the truth

that we need

to be saved

so that we

can escape.

Do you want

to escape

the darkness?

Do you want

to know what

life is like

on the surface?

What everything

was meant to be

like back when

the world was

young,

before any

taint of

corruption

had entered

this world?

Jesus is the

light that has

come into

the world,

sent from the

Father up

above,

and he does

not want

anyone to

be stuck,

to remain,

to be lost

in the

darkness.

He says,

I came so

that all who

believe in

me should

not remain

in darkness.

But notice

who it is

that escapes

the darkness.

According to

Jesus,

it's all

who believe

in me.

Do you

believe in

Jesus?

From here,

Jesus tells

us what will

happen if we

do not.

Verse 47,

if anyone

hears my

words but

does not

keep them,

I do not

judge that

person.

For I did

not come to

judge the

world,

but to

save the

world.

There is

a judge

for the

one who

rejects

me and

does not

accept my

words.

The very

words I

have spoken

will condemn

them at

the last

day.

These are

sobering

words.

We may

choose not

to keep the

words of

Jesus.

We may

choose not

to obey

him.

We may

choose not

to accept

the things

that he's

been saying.

we may

choose to

reject

him.

But if

that's

you,

this is

what Jesus

wants you

to know.

He says,

I did

not come,

at least

not in

this first

time that

he came.

I did

not come

to judge

you,

but to

save you.

but on

the last

day,

my words

which you

rejected

and tossed

away,

the things

that I

said and

you heard,

they will

become the

thing which

judges you,

the thing

which leads

to your

condemnation.

And here's

why,

says Jesus,

because my

words,

everything that

I've been

saying to

you,

it doesn't

just come

from me.

They are

in fact the

very words

that God

has commanded

me to

say to

you.

There is a

judge for

the one who

rejects me

and does

not accept

my words.

The very

words I

have spoken

will condemn

them at

the last

day.

For I

did not

speak on

my own,

but the

Father who

sent me

commanded me

to say all

that I

have spoken.

I know

that his

command leads

to eternal

life.

So whatever

I say is

just what the

Father has

told me to

say.

In other

words,

if you

choose to

disregard

Jesus,

to reject

him,

it's not

just the

words of a

man named

Jesus that

you are

disregarding

and rejecting.

It's the

words of

God that

you are

disregarding

and rejecting.

And it

will come

back to

you on

the last

day at

your trial

when you

stand before

the judge,

says Jesus.

I hope you

hear these

sobering words

of Jesus.

This life is

not a game.

It's not

just about

fun and

games.

I mean,

we're on a

collision course,

all of us,

a sinking

ship.

We're not

free to do

as we

please.

God has

spoken

through

Jesus.

He has

showed us

the way

to escape

and to

be saved.

And there

are grave

consequences

for ignoring

and rejecting

Jesus and

what God

has said

through him.

You will

go down

with the

ship.

You will

arrive at

your trial

only to

find out

that you've

already sealed

your fate

if you

rejected and

tossed away

the words

of Christ

that you

heard.

finally,

at the

end here,

we come

full circle

back to

where we

started.

We heard

Jesus claim

at the

beginning

to have

oneness

with the

Father.

The one

who believes

in me

believes in

the one

who sent

me,

he said.

The one

who sees

me

sees the

one who

sent me.

And now

here,

Jesus tells

us pretty

clearly a

little different

wording.

The one

who hears

my words

hears the

words of

the Father

who sent

me.

You may

have heard

this already

but I love

this.

I find it

so deeply

fascinating.

Do you

realize

that the

words of

Jesus,

the message

of Jesus

is not

his own?

Do you

know where

Jesus gets

this teaching

from that's

been amazing

people for

the past

three years

in this

story?

does it

surprise you

to hear

that everything

Jesus says

is what

God has

commanded him

to say?

I mean,

isn't that

something?

I only

say what

my Father

has commanded

me to say.

I love

this.

It's

fascinating

to me.

Jesus does

not have

an independent

ministry.

Jesus is

accountable

for every

word that

he speaks

and teaches.

At the

very least,

he functions

in his

teaching just

like the

prophets of

old did.

Let me

show you

this quickly

in a couple

of places

because this

might sound

a little

strange to

us.

I mean,

what do

you mean

Jesus when

you say

that everything

you say,

the Father

has commanded

you to

say all

these things?

Think back

to the story

of Jonah.

A familiar

story we

all know.

First verses

of the book

of Jonah.

The word

of the Lord

came to

Jonah son

of Amittai.

Go to

the great

city of

Nineveh

and preach

against it

because its

wickedness

has come

up before

me.

God

commanded

the prophets

like Jonah

to speak

on his

behalf and

it would

appear at

least for

the prophets

of old that

it was

possible for

them to

disobey.

Jonah

did.

He got

on a

ship and

started

sailing the

opposite

direction

but God

wouldn't

take no

for an

answer from

Jonah

and he

brought him

right back

and he

commanded him

a second

time in

chapter 3

verses 1

and 2

then the

word of

the Lord

came to

Jonah a

second time

go to

the great

city of

Nineveh

and proclaim

to it

the message

I give

you.

So Jonah

was commanded

not only to

go but

also to

proclaim

specifically

the message

that God

gave him

and of

course as

the story

goes this

time Jonah

went and

he said

what God

told him

to say

and this

is how it

works with

the prophets

they didn't

just make up

the stuff

that they

said God

commanded

them to

say specific

things to

the people

consider Isaiah

familiar passage

Isaiah chapter 6

Isaiah 6:9

verse 9

God said

to Isaiah

go and

tell this

people

be ever

hearing

but never

understanding

be ever

seeing

but never

perceiving

notice here

again that

God

commanded

Isaiah to

go and

speak on

his behalf

but he also

commanded Isaiah

precisely what

to say to

the people

like the

exact words

say this

or we

could look

at Jeremiah

the Lord

said to

Jeremiah

Jeremiah

Jeremiah 11:3

chapter 11

verse 3

tell them

the people

of Judah

that this

is what

the Lord

the God

of Israel

says

cursed

is the

one who

does not

obey the

terms of

this

covenant

the terms

I commanded

your ancestors

when I brought

them out of

Egypt

out of the

iron smelting

furnace

again

God

command

commanded

Jeremiah

exactly

what words

to speak

on his

behalf

to the

people

in the

same

chapter

just a

little

further

down

the

page

at

verse 6

the Lord

said to

Jeremiah

proclaim

all these

words

in the

towns

of Judah

and in

the

streets

of

Jerusalem

and then

he gives

the words

listen to

the terms

of this

covenant

and he

goes

on

Ezekiel

Ezekiel 34:1

chapter

34

verse 1

and 2

same

thing

the word

of the

Lord

came to

me

says

Ezekiel

son

of

man

prophesy

against

the

shepherds

of

Israel

prophesy

and say

to them

this is

what the

sovereign

Lord

says

woe

to you

shepherds

of Israel

who only

take care

of yourselves

again

God

commanded

Ezekiel

exactly

what

words

to say

on

his

behalf

to the

people

this is

how it

worked

with

Moses

at least

16

times

by a

rough

count

this

week

that I

did

God

said

to

Moses

say

to

the

Israelites

or

say

to

Pharaoh

and

then

he

gave

Moses

the

exact

words

to

say

there's

another

20

times

through

Leviticus

and there's

a few

more

in

numbers

say

to

the

Israelites

and God

gave

them

the

exact

words

to

say

this

was

the

mark

of

a

true

prophet

of

the

Lord

they

literally

heard

the

voice

of

God

speaking

to

them

in

their

heads

all

the

time

throughout

their

ministries

as

often

as

the

Lord

wanted

to

say

something

to

the

people

you

may

remember

this

with

Samuel

the

boy

who

came

to

live

at

the

tabernacle

in

Shiloh

back

in

the

days

just

he

was

there

and

you

might

remember

the

story

of

how

God

called

out

to

him

in

the

night

he

didn't

know

who

it

was

at

first

the

Lord

spoke

to

Samuel

and

we

read

in

1

1 Samuel 3:19

Samuel

chapter

3

verse

19

that

the

Lord

was

with

Samuel

as

he

grew

up

and

he

let

none

of

Samuel's

words

fall

to

the

ground

why

was

it

that

none

of

Samuel's

words

fell

to

everything

Samuel

predicted

and said

came true

because

God

knows

the

future

and

God

was

the

one

telling

Samuel

exactly

what

to

say

to

the

people

so

what

we

hear

from

Jesus

is

not

a

new

thing

that's

happening

he

said

for

I

did

not

speak

on

my

own

but

the

father

who

sent

me

commanded

me

to

say

all

that

I

have

spoken

so

whatever

I

say

is

just

what

the

father

has

told

me

to

say

Jesus

served

God

as

a

prophet

which

doesn't

just

mean

that

he

made

predictions

it

means

primarily

that

he

spoke

on

God's

behalf

to

the

people

telling

them

exactly

what

God

commanded

him

to

say

to

them

it

means

that

just

like

the

prophets

of

old

Jesus

too

heard

the

voice

of

his

father

in

his

head

all

the

time

I

would

argue

even

more

so

because

he's

the

very

son

of

God

and

unlike

the

prophets

of

old

has

this

deep

unity

and

oneness

with

the

father

Jesus

is

the

ultimate

prophet

it's

not

just

a

cool

thing

that

we

hear

in

Bible

college

and

systematic

theology

textbooks

that's

what

Jesus

is

telling

us

right

here

my

words

to

you

all

of

them

are

God's

words

to

you

well

what do

we do

with all

this

many

Christians

today are

excited about

Bible

prophecy

mainly

because they

believe that

all kinds of

Bible prophecies

that were

unfulfilled

in the

past

are

being

fulfilled

today

in our

day

and current

events

and what

we read

in the

news

and at

the root

of some

of this

excitement

I think

is the

sincere love

of discovery

the sincere

desire to

figure out

just what

those prophecies

in the Bible

point to

for others

it's just

a sincere

desire

to

see what

we long

for

the Lord

to come

back

to return

the end

to be

here

that is

our hope

after all

but we

need to

be careful

here

because the

excitement

for some

is mainly

in the

unfulfilled

prophecies

in the

future

prophecies

in the

words of

prophecy

that

predict

as if

the other

words of

prophecy

that don't

predict

are just

kind of

old

and boring

what do

we learn

from Jesus

here

we learn

that every

word that

Jesus spoke

is prophecy

all of

his words

are the

words of

God

that's the

biblical

definition

of a

prophet

what if

we were

as excited

today

about

everything

that Jesus

said

as we are

about the

things that

pertain to

the future

what if we

gave the

same

attention to

the

commands

of

Christ

today

as we

give to

the words

Christ spoke

about the

end times

if every

word that

Jesus spoke

is prophecy

is from

God

shouldn't we

deeply love

and treasure

all his

words

and not

just the

ones that

tickle our

fancy

this is one

thing that we

can take from

Jesus words

but more

importantly

I hope

we hear the

fullness of

what Jesus is

claiming

in this last

perhaps public

address

before his

hour of

suffering

imagine that

you're there

in the crowd

listening to

Jesus cry

out

what does

Jesus want

you to

know

what does

he want

you to

believe

before he

goes to

the cross

he wants

you to

know that

he is

one

with his

father

and that

in him

you are

seeing

God

the one

who sent

him

he wants

you to

know that

he is

the light

in this

dark world

that we

live in

he is the

reliable

source of

truth

that has

come from

outside of

our world

to light

the way

for us

Jesus wants

you to

know that

if you do

not receive

and believe

his words

today

your rejection

of his

words will

seal your

fate

on the

last day

and finally

Jesus wants

you to know

that God

has much

to say

to you

and that

every word

that he has

been speaking

for these

past three

years

has been

the very

words

God

commanded

him

to say

to us

do you

believe

what Jesus

is saying

to you

do you

believe

that Jesus

is

God

in human

flesh

walking

here

speaking

here

among

us

this is

why we

don't

hesitate

to worship

this man

Jesus

because he

is God

he is

the light

he is

the way

he is

the truth

he is

the life

and so

much more

let's pray

father in

heaven

we bow

before you

we're in

awe of

what you

have done

in sending

your son

to save

us

we barely

even fully

understand

how

trapped

and lost

we

were

but we

thank you

that Jesus

has come

to set

us free

and to

give us

life and

hope

for all

eternity

what an

awesome

gift

we don't

deserve it

but we

say thank

you and

we praise

you for

your love

for your

grace

I pray

Lord

we pray

that you

would give

ears to

the people

in this

community

to hear

these words

of Christ

this plea

of Christ

on our

lips

we ask

this in

his name

amen

okay

yeah